Madras High Court Issues Notice on Plea Seeking Probe Into Journalist Saurav Das
The Madras High Court has issued notice on a plea seeking an inquiry into journalist Saurav Das's antecedents, cancellation of his passport and Aadhaar Card, and blocking of his X and Instagram accounts over alleged remarks against the judiciary.
A bench comprising Chief Justice SA Dharmadhikari and Justice G Arul Murugan issued notice to several authorities, including the Regional Passport Officer (Chennai), the Chairperson of the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI), the Union Home Ministry, the Foreign Secretary (Ministry of External Affairs), the Secretary (Ministry of Law and Justice), the Secretary (Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology), and the Grievance Officers of X (previously Twitter) and Instagram.
The court issued the notice, returnable in six weeks, and adjourned the hearing.
The petition, filed by Ganesh Kumar of Kanchipuram District, seeks directions to the government to conduct a detailed, thorough and fair investigation into the antecedents of the individuals concerned. It also seeks necessary action against Saurav Das, including the cancellation of his passport and Aadhaar Card.
Additionally, the petitioner has sought directions to the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) to block Saurav Das's Instagram and Twitter handles and prevent him from making derogatory statements against the judiciary and judges of the Supreme Court.
During Friday's hearing, Advocate B Jagannath, appearing for the petitioner, submitted that the petition sought an inquiry into Saurav Das's antecedents. He alleged that Das had been making derogatory statements against the judiciary.
"The manner in which he speaks about the judiciary, this is not the way to speak. I had given a complaint to the authorities, but no action had been taken. So I'm filing this petition," Jagannath said.
With notices issued to the concerned government authorities and social media platforms, the matter will now be taken up after six weeks. The petition places the alleged remarks against the judiciary, the requested investigation into Das's background and the proposed restrictions on his social media accounts before the High Court.

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