Maharashtra police files case against YouTuber Dhruv Rathee over parody account's post on X

The state cyber department reported that the account falsely claimed that Om Birla’s daughter had passed the UPSC exam without taking it.

Published on: Jul 13, 2024, 16:05:02 IST

By HT News Desk

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Maharashtra's cyber police filed a case against popular YouTuber Dhruv Rathee after a parody account supposedly posted a fake message on X about Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla’s daughter, a senior official said on Saturday.

The state cyber department reported that the account @dhruvrahtee falsely claimed that Birla’s daughter had passed the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) exam without taking it.

The parody account's bio on X reads, “This is the fan and parody account and not affiliated with the original account of @dhruv_rathee. Not impersonating anyone. This account is Parody.”

Based on a complaint from a relative of Birla, the police charged the YouTuber under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) for defamation, intentional insult with intent to provoke a breach of peace, and making a statement leading to mischief, along with charges under the IT Act, the official said.

When it was noted that the alleged fake message was posted by a parody account and not Rathee's own, the official said, "We are investigating the matter."

The parody account posted on X on Saturday, “As directed by @MahaCyber1, I have deleted all my posts and comments on Anjali Birla, I will like to apologize as I was unaware about the facts and copied someone else' tweets and shared it.”

Earlier this year, Aam Aadmi Party Rajya Sabha MP Swati Maliwal claimed that she received rape and death threats following Rathee's video about the alleged assault on her by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal's aide, Bibhav Kumar.

Taking to X, Rathee wrote that several attempts had been made to defame him and that "perpetrators are pretending to be victims," without naming anyone. He said, “Fake allegations against me, daily death threats, dehumanizing insults, coordinated campaigns to defame me … I’m used to it by now.”

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HT News Desk
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