The Madras High Court recently quashed a
criminal complaint against BSNL employees who put ‘smiling face with
tears’ emoji in the official WhatsApp group.
A
lady officer in BSNL had filed complaint against other employees who
put the emoji reacting to a video she had posted in the official
WhatsApp group. The group was intended to share the complaints and
deficiencies in the service of BSNL and to rectify them and improve the
quality of service. The video featured three BSNL customers complaining
about deficiency of service.
The
complaint was registered under the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Harassment
of Women Act, Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of
Atrocities) Act, and Section 67 of the Information Technology Act. In
the complaint, she stated that because of the posting of crying smiley
faces, she was put to mental agony and hence, she could not sleep and
she was crying all the night on the said day.
Before
the high court, the accused employees stated that the posting of crying
smiley faces were to express their feelings in response to video
footage and that it is not intended to harm the officer.
Justice
SS Sundar observed that an emoji is sent to express one’s feeling about
something, it cannot be treated as an overt act on others and Section
67 of the IT Act will not attract as there is no obscenity in the emoji.
The court also observed that as the posting of emoji is to express
one’s feeling, though it may offend the officer, it is not an act
attracting Section 4 of the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Harassment of
Women Act, 1998. Further it was observed that the complainant had no
case that smiley was intended to humiliate her for being a member of
Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribes.
Quashing
the criminal cases against the accused, the judge opined that they
ought not to have indulged in posting such emoji in the interest of BSNL
since WhatsApp group is formed to promote team spirit. “This Court
wanted the petitioners to express their regret as the de-facto
complainant in her individual perception felt offended by the posting of
such crying smiley. Accordingly the first petitioner has filed an
affidavit on behalf of all the petitioners, recording their regret for
posting such smileys. The matter should rest here and it will be neither
in the interest of justice to permit such complaints to stay,” the court added.