SC leaves it for legislature to put curbs on Sikh-centric jokes

New Delhi, Feb 7 (IANS) Expressing its inability to issue guidelines for curbing Sikh-centric jokes or their circulation, the Supreme Court on Tuesday said it is within the realm of legislature to act upon.

"If it is a societal or psychological phenomenon, it is for the legislature to intervene," said the bench of Justice Dipak Misra and Justice R. Banumathi, adding that "we can't lay down moral guidelines for the citizens".

Asking the Centre what is its stand on the issues affecting human dignity or human psychology, the court told the petitioners: "We don't intend to render a judgment. Your focus is somewhere else, your prayers are somewhere else."

Making it clear that it can issue directions only "if human dignity is violated by the State or its instrumentalities or anyone amenable to its jurisdiction", the court said it cannot pass orders about an individual or a community.

Sikh is a highly respected community but "you are bringing it down by fighting litigation to ban jokes", the bench said and referred to the resistance to the Alexander the Great by the people of the region.

However, the bench asked senior counsel R.S. Suri to address the court on the issue in view of its jurisdictional constraints in passing directions for issuance of guidelines being sought by the petitioners. The court fixed March 27 as the next date of hearing.

The court said this in the course of hearing the plea by Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC), advocate Harvinder Chowdhury and others, who sought direction to the Telecom Ministry to install filters to curb the circulation of jokes on Sikhs.

They have also sought guidelines for sensitising people on the issue affecting the community.

Addressing the court, Suri said that family units are increasingly becoming nuclear and the constant stereotyping of the community has negative repercussions. Pointing out that the "social problem" is becoming acute, Suri said: "It can be Sikh or any other community."

He told the apex court that the committee headed by a former judge of the top court, Justice H.S. Bedi, has drawn certain guidelines for the consideration of the court.

Advocate Harvinder Chowdhury told the court that joke is different thing, but making a joke of a community is altogerther different. "I am talking of human dignity."

The DSGMC had set up a committee comprising former apex court judges Justice H.S. Bedi, Justice M.Y. Eqbal, Rajya Sabha member Pawan Kumar Verma, North Eastern Council member M.P. Bezbaruah and former Union Law Secretary Dr. Rajhbir Singh to suggest guidelines as to how to go about curbing racial comments and jokes on Sikhs.

Similarly, the SGPC too set up a committee headed by its President Jathedar Avtar Singh, former Punjab and Haryana High Court Judge K.S. Grewal, former Punjab Chief Secretary Ramesh Inder Singh, Vice Chancellor of Fathegarh Sahib Guru Granth Sahib University Gurmohan Singh, well-known scholar Prabhjot Kaur, Punjab and Haryana High Court advocates Gurminder Singh and Pavit Singh Mattewal, Supreme Court lawyer Satinder Singh Gulati, SPCP secretary Avtar Singh and additional secretary Simarjit Singh.

The SGPC in its petition sought direction to the Telecom Ministry to install filters to screen websites which target Sikh community with indecent, offensive and oppressive jokes violative of the relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code.

Besides this, the SGPC sought direction to the website owners to pay adequate compensation to the National Legal Service Authority for having caused damages to the reputation and dignity of the Sikh community.

Pointing to the difficulties being faced by the community, the SGPC in its petition contended that even before a Sikh child faces an actual competition, he/she has to get over the stereotype of his/her image.

The SGPC urged the court to decide "whether such acts of circulation of funny jokes on Sikhs, amounts to violation of their fundamental right to live with dignity under Article 21 of the Constitution; their right of equality under Article 14 of the Constitution; and their right to profess and propagate their religion, as provided in Article 25 of the Constitution".

(This story has not been edited by Social News XYZ staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)