Rahul Gandhi’s tweet on minor deleted: Twitter to Delhi HC

A bench of chief justice DN Patel and justice Jyoti Singh, while hearing a plea seeking action against Gandhi for posting the pictures of the minor victim’s parents, issued notice to Twitter and asked them to file an affidavit as the petitioner’s counsel objected to Twitter’s submissions

Microblogging platform Twitter on Tuesday informed the Delhi high court that it has removed Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s tweet, revealing the identity of the nine-year-old Dalit girl in the alleged gangrape and murder in Delhi cantonment, and that his account is now operational without the objectionable tweet.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. During the proceedings on Tuesday, senior advocate Sajan Poovaya, representing Twitter, told the court that Gandhi’s tweet with the pictures was in violation of their privacy policy and hence it was deleted. (HT Archive)

However, a bench of chief justice DN Patel and justice Jyoti Singh, while hearing a plea seeking action against Gandhi for posting the pictures of the minor victim’s parents, issued notice to Twitter and asked them to file an affidavit as the petitioner’s counsel objected to Twitter’s submissions.

“We are making it explicitly clear that we are not issuing notice to other respondents (Gandhi and the city police). Notice is being issued only to respondent no. 4 (Twitter),” said the court.

The bench was hearing a plea by petitioner Makarand Suresh Mhadlekar, a social activist, who alleged in the petition that by posting the photograph with the parents of the child victim, Gandhi violated the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015, and Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act, 2012, which prohibit disclosing the identity of minor victims of sexual offences.

The nine-year-old Dalit girl died under mysterious circumstances on August 1, with her parents alleging that she was raped, murdered and cremated by a crematorium’s priest and his accomplices in southwest Delhi’s Old Nangal village. Citing disclosure statements of two accused in the case, the Delhi Police had last month informed the court that the girl died due to “suffocation” during the sexual assault.

During the proceedings on Tuesday, senior advocate Sajan Poovaya, representing Twitter, told the court that Gandhi’s tweet with the pictures was in violation of their privacy policy and hence it was deleted.However, this was objected to by advocate Gautam Jha, counsel for the petitioner. 

The petitioner claimed that Gandhi was trying to gain political mileage.

Senior advocate R S Cheema and lawyer Tarannum Cheema appeared for Rahul Gandhi.

The plea has sought initiation of appropriate legal action against Gandhi by the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights. The matter will be heard on November 30.