How many will be jailed before polls?

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday reinstated the bail granted to YouTuber Sattai Duraimurugan, who was accused of making derogatory remarks against Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin.

Making a sharp observation, the court said, "If before elections we start putting behind bars everyone who makes allegations on YouTube, imagine how many will be jailed." The bench of Justices AS Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan, while granting bail, said, "We do not think that by protesting and expressing views, he can be said to have misused his liberty."

The top court was addressing a plea filed by YouTuber Sattai, challenging a Madras High Court (HC) order that cancelled his bail, noting that within a few days of giving an undertaking before the court, Sattai made derogatory remarks against the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister.

Setting aside the order cancelling Sattai’s bail, the Supreme Court opined that he could not be said to have misused the liberty granted to him. Senior advocate Mukul Rohtagi, representing the Tamil Nadu government, suggested that stringent conditions should be imposed on the YouTuber to prevent him from making scandalous remarks.

Responding to this, the bench stated, “This court will decide what is scandalous and what is not.” The Supreme Court further took note of the FIR filed against the YouTuber, citing his participation in a protest condemning the demolition of Babri Masjid. He was reportedly speaking furiously and demanding the release of certain persons in custody.

“We don’t think that by protesting and by expressing his views, it can be said that the appellant has misused the liberty granted to him. Even otherwise, we are of the view that the grounds mentioned in the impugned order cannot constitute grounds for cancellation of bail,” the bench said in its order.

Sattai Duraimurugan was arrested by the Tamil Nadu Police in 2021 for criticising MK Stalin and others in his YouTube videos. Initially, the Madras High Court granted him bail with the condition to avoid making derogatory comments. However, in June 2022, the bail was revoked following a petition from the state government. The petition cited Duraimurugan’s continued derogatory remarks despite his earlier promise.