Daijiworld Media Network - Lucknow

Lucknow, Oct 12: The Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court on Saturday directed Meta and Google to remove allegedly objectionable videos targeting renowned Ramkatha narrator and Padma Vibhushan awardee Jagadguru Rambhadracharya within 48 hours.

A division bench comprising Justice Shekhar B Saraf and Justice Prashant Kumar passed the order while hearing a petition filed by Sharad Chandra Srivastava and others. The court instructed the petitioners to provide the relevant URL links to the social media platforms to facilitate the removal process. The next hearing has been scheduled for November 11.

The petition alleged that Shashank Shekhar, who operates multiple channels on YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram, has been posting derogatory and defamatory content against Rambhadracharya, who also serves as Vice Chancellor of the Jagadguru Swami Ram Bhadracharya Divyang University in Chitrakoot, Madhya Pradesh.

Despite repeated objections from Rambhadracharya’s followers, the videos reportedly remain online, with no action taken by the platforms to remove them. The petition also urged the central and state governments to frame and enforce stricter rules for regulating social media to curb the spread of defamatory content.

The petitioners highlighted that the content not only defamed Rambhadracharya but also mocked his disability, as he lost his eyesight in childhood. During the hearing, the state government informed the court that the Office of the State Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities has taken cognisance and issued a notice to Shekhar, directing him to appear before the commission on October 18.