The Supreme Court on Friday decided to examine whether “Sardarji jokes”, ridiculing the Sikh community as unintelligent, stupid and idiot, can be banned from 5,000 odd websites on the Internet.
A bench of Justices T.S. Thakur and V. Gopala Gowda, however, granted six weeks time to petitioner Harvinder Chowdhry to file additional documents and materials in support of her claim that these jokes offended the Sikh community. In her petition, she urged the top court to ensure forthwith a ban on the 5,000 odd websites targeting the community with funny jokes against the Sikhs projecting them as “unintelligent, stupid, idiot, foolish, naïve, inept”, nor well-versed with English language.
Ms Harvinder Chowdhry submitted that she herself belong to the Sikh community but married to a Hindu. She said that such jokes violated the community’s fundamental right to life and to live with dignity guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution of India.
Justice Thakur initially suggested Ms Chowdhry that the matter could be referred to the bench headed by Justice J.S. Khehar, who is himself a Sikh. However, the petitioner insisted that the matter should be heard by the bench headed by Mr Thakur. As the issue generated laughter in the court, Justice Thakur told the petitioner “But the Sikh community is known for its great sense of humour. They also enjoy the jokes. Even Kushwanth Singh used to write jokes and wrote a book.”
The petitioner, however, said that the community has been subjected to racial abuse and constant ridicule not only in India but various other foreign countries on account of the constant fun made at the community through jokes by these websites. She also told the court that recently Prime Minister Narendra Modi told an election rally in Bihar that “Biharis are the most intelligent people” which reflected that the rest of the other communities are unintelligent. “When he (Mr Modi) goes to Punjab he will say the Sikhs are intelligent people,” Justice Thakur remarked, amidst laughter in the court hall.
She told the court that these websites should not only be banned, but their owners should be prosecuted under Section 153A IPC (promoting enmity between different communities which entail a punishment up to one year; 153B (imputations prejudicial to national integration) that could send a person to five years RI and 268 IPC (public nuisance) that entails six months imprisonment.
