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Taking a strong note over the spate of mob lynching incidents in various parts of the country, the Supreme Court on has in in its latest hearing has concern over the issue in India triggered by messages spread through social media and said it appears that no one is “bothered”.
Meanwhile , a bench of justice Madan B Lokur and justice UU Lalit observed this when it was hearing a related to blocking of videos of sexual offences on social sites.
“So many things are coming nowadays on social media. People are getting lynched but no one seems to be bothered,” the bench observed.
On July 17, another bench of the Supreme Court headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra had said “horrendous acts of mobocracy” cannot be allowed to overrun the law of the land and had asked Parliament to consider enacting a new law to sternly deal with mob lynching and cow vigilantism.
During the hearing , the counsel representing internet search engines and social networking applications — Google, Yahoo India Pvt Ltd, Microsoft Corporation (India) Pvt Ltd, Facebook Ireland Ltd and Whatsapp Inc — informed the court that they had filed their reports on status of progress made by them in the matter.
The counsel appearing for the petitioners claimed before the bench that the Centre was not complying with the apex court’s directions passed in the matter.
The government had set up a high level committee to look into the issue . It was debated in parliament in the on- going monsoon session . The Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh , put the onus on the states to handle law and order.
“It is the Union of India which has to comply with the law and the order of this court. People of India expect this at least from the Union of India,” the bench observed and posted the matter for further hearing in the fourth week of August.
