Land in Jail with a WhatsApp Status? Bombay HC Issues Caution

The Bombay High Court delivered an important message to WhatsApp users, urging them to be responsible and cautious while communicating on the platform. This message came in response to a case involving a man accused of posting content that promoted hatred against a religious group. The court emphasized that WhatsApp status is meant for conveying messages to the user's contacts, and people often check the updates of those on their contact list. It clarified that these status updates, which can be in the form of pictures or videos depicting one's activities or thoughts, disappear after 24 hours. The primary purpose of such status updates is communication with known individuals within one's contact list. In the case of 27-year-old Landkar, who sought to quash the FIR lodged against him for allegedly offending religious sentiments, the court rejected his plea. Landkar was charged under the provisions of the Schedule Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and the Information Technology Act. The case against Landkar originated in March 2023 when he allegedly posted a religiously offensive question as his WhatsApp status. This led viewers to search for it on Google, where they found objectionable material that offended religious sentiments.