Jailed for posting message on Facebook case: Ashraf sends plea to police commissioner
‘Provide me justice; False cases have been lodged against me.’
Mangaluru, Sept 07: Ashraf, who was arrested for allegedly posting a Facebook post, appealed to the city police commissioner on Friday to provide him justice.
"The CCB police arrested me when police filed a suo motto complaint against me over an FB post in which I questioned superstition. False allegations have been leveled against me. I am a postgraduate, and active on social networking sites. I keep on responding to the happenings of the society."
“Over the recent flood in Kerala, some people had posted “the court permission for the entry of menstruating women to Sabarimala temple was the main reason for flood situation in Kerala.” “Then what is the reason of flood situation in Tulu Nadu which is the creation of Parashuram? I had asked”, he said in the plea.
“Based on such a simple post, the Mangaluru North (Bunder) police have booked suo motto case against me under section 153, 505 (2),” Ashraf explained in detail every torture he faced by the Bunder police and CCB police. Ashraf further wrote that he was threatened not to reveal all these things in front of the judge and produced in the court. The court had sent me to the judicial custody for six days. The jail staff has taken over my purse, cash, and items worth Rs. 3,000, "Ashraf said in the appeal.
"After getting released on bail, I had told about this to DYFI and wrote the whole thing and posted on Facebook as well. For that, once again the Bunder police inspector Suresh came to me and threatened that they would present a report in the court to cancel the bail. They have forcibly taken confession letter from me. They also threatened me not to write anything on Facebook hereafter, " he said in the plea.
"In all, I have faced injustice in this entire case. I was preparing to become a lecturer in the future but now became a criminal by this injustice. Now I am mentally disturbed, and my prospects are inadequate. Take action against the guilty," he pleaded.
DYFI demands a comprehensive investigation
The DYFI has given a memorandum to the police commissioner to provide justice to the victim Ashraf and carry out a detailed investigation in the case.
DYFI district secretary Santosh Bajal, Naveen Konchadi, and Asha Bolur were present.
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Madras HC rules spousal privacy as a fundamental right, disallows evidence obtained through snooping
Chennai: In a landmark judgment, the Madras High Court emphasized the protection of spousal privacy as a fundamental right, ruling that evidence obtained by one spouse snooping on the other is inadmissible in court. This ruling came as Justice G.R. Swaminathan overturned a lower court's decision that had allowed a husband to submit his wife's call records in a marital dispute case.
The court made it clear that privacy, as a constitutionally guaranteed right, includes the privacy of married individuals from each other, rejecting the notion that marital misconduct permits invasion of personal privacy. "Law cannot proceed on the premise that marital misconduct is the norm. Privacy as a fundamental right includes spousal privacy, and evidence obtained by invading this right is inadmissible," stated the court.
The case originated in Paramakudi Subordinate Court, where the husband submitted the wife's call data as evidence to support claims of adultery, cruelty, and desertion. He had obtained these records without her consent, an act the High Court deemed a violation of privacy. Additionally, the call records were not accompanied by a certificate under Section 65B(4) of the Indian Evidence Act, making them procedurally inadmissible.
Justice Swaminathan noted that allowing such evidence would open doors to spouses spying on each other, damaging the foundational trust in marital relationships. “Trust forms the bedrock of matrimonial relationships. The spouses must have implicit and total faith in each other. Snooping destroys the fabric of marital life,” he stated.
The High Court further advised that allegations of misconduct could be pursued through authorized methods, such as interrogatories or affidavits, cautioning that the court must not assume marital misconduct as a norm justifying privacy breaches.
