‘No law backing your action’, SC tells Yogi govt on ‘Name and Shame’ posters

The Supreme Court on Thursday heard the Uttar Pradesh government’s petition challenging the Allahabad high court order to remove the ‘name and shame’ posters and told it that there’s no law to back its action.

The top court, however, did not pass any order and deferred the matter to be heard next week by a three-judge bench. “We will refer the matter to a 3-judge bench which will be heard in the regular sitting the coming next week”, the bench said. 

The SC bench also requested the Chief Justice of India SA Bobde to recommend the matter to a larger bench soon. 

Noting that the state government has full authority to take action against rioters and punish them, the vacation bench of Justices UU Lalit and Aniruddha Bose asked Solicitor General Tushar Mehta whether the state government has the power to put such posters. Mehta replied to the bench, saying they were put up as a ‘deterrent’ and removing them isn’t a big issue. 

Mehta also said that a person wielding guns during a protest cannot claim the right to privacy.

On the other hand, Senior Counsel Abhishek Manu Singhvi, who represented retired IPS officer, also an accused in the case, stressed that naming and shaming is not allowed even in cases of severe offences.

“Since when do we have in this country – that we can name and shame alleged rapists? Alleged accused? He is liable to be lynched in such a scenario,” Singhvi asked.

On Monday, the Allahabad High Court had directed the Yogi Adityanath government to remove all roadside banners with photographs and information of anti-citizenship law protesters allegedly involved in violence in Lucknow.

The Lucknow district administration has placed posters on several locations with photographs and information of people who have been asked to pay compensation for damage to property during anti-CAA protests.