Madhya Pradesh HC bars unauthorised use of live-streamed court proceedings on social media

The interim order was on a plea that users were allegedly editing and sharing such videos online as memes.

Madhya Pradesh HC bars unauthorised use of live-streamed court proceedings on social media

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The Madhya Pradesh High Court on Monday restrained social media platforms, media agencies and the public from editing, morphing or unlawfully sharing live-streamed court proceedings, Bar and Bench reported.

The bench of Chief Justice Suresh Kumar Kait and Justice Vivek Jain passed an interim order on a petition alleging that social media users were editing and sharing videos of court proceedings online, often as memes and short clips.

The restriction will be in place till the court gives its judgement on the plea.

The court also ordered the takedown of videos and short clips that allegedly violated the 2021 Madhya Pradesh Live-Streaming Rules.

The petitioner has sought the High Court’s intervention to stop social media platforms, content creators and the public from repurposing videos of the proceedings, contending that the act violates Rule 11(b) of the live-streaming rules.

The rules ban unauthorised recording, sharing or alteration of live-streamed court proceedings.

The petition said that the comment sections on some of the platforms contained offensive remarks about judges and lawyers, harming the judiciary’s public image.

The videos were being circulated with allegedly “spicier” captions to boost viewership and revenue from advertisements, the petitioner said.

The plea called for the removal of unauthorised content from social media platforms and urged criminal action against those violating the rules.

The court observed that live-streams of the...

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