For now, Google let off the hook on defamatory blogs

Google India cannot be held responsible for defamatory blogs appearing on the search giant’s website for the time being. The Bombay high court, on an appeal filed by the company, recently granted it ad interim relief, which means Google India cannot be accused if defamatory blogs are published on the website as the platform is “controlled” by Google Inc, based in the US.

Earlier, separate single-judge benches had granted relief to two petitioners — cardiologist Ashwin Mehta and journalist Gurbir Singh — who had dragged the website to the high court for carrying allegedly defamatory blogs against them.

The benches, headed by justices Abhay Oka and SJ Kathawalla, respectively, had admitted pleas of Mehta and Singh, restraining Google India from publishing the blogs against them.

In June this year, Google India filed an appeal in Mehta’s case before a division bench of justices DK Deshmukh and RG Ketkar, expressing helplessness in restraining the bloggers accused of writing defamatory content against the cardiologist. The search giant told the high court that such blogs can only be controlled by Google Inc and Google India has no role in it.

The division bench, presided by justice Deshmukh, admitted the appeal filed by Google in Mehta’s case, observing that issue is very wide in terms.

“The stay granted by the single-judge bench prevents the appellants (Google) from publishing the same article, similar article and any other defamatory article and others also.
The case of the company is they have no control over the publication and they were not responsible for publishing the original article also. Therefore, in our opinion, as we have admitted the appeal, operation of the ad-interim order need to be stayed,” the judges observed.

Appearing for the website, senior counsel Iqbal Chagla and Shrikant Doijode argued that assuming that Mehta’s complaint is justified, it was not in Google India’s hands to control the blogs.

The website told the court that every minute at least 2,50,000 words are put on the blogs, including the one by Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan.

Mehta, director of cardiology, Jaslok Hospital, had moved the high court, seeking injunction on more than 20 allegedly defamatory articles published against him on Google blogs.

“The statement[s] impute as if I am guilty of professional misconduct as also financial misconduct, and it is clear that the same is motivated and prima facie malicious,” Mehta’s lawyer Yatin Shah argued.

Mehta also claimed a compensation of Rs10 lakh from the website for the damage caused to his reputation. The compensation part of the petition will be decided at the time of deciding the appeal.

The website, in its affidavit, said, “Google India does not have any connection with or responsibility towards getting local content for Google Inc, USA. Google Inc and Google India work as different units and function independently. Google India does not have control, operate or provide any local or other support for Google Inc’s services rendered on www.google.com.”

“Every user is required to “read and agree to the ‘Blogger Terms of Service’ prior to posting any contents on the blog sites,” says the affidavit filed by Gitanjali Duggal, constituted attorney, Google India. Advocate Chagla told the court that his client “render[s] no service at all” to the blogging site.

The appeal will now come up for hearing in due course.

Quote Ashwin Mehta, petitioner “They have admitted that the articles are defamatory, but they are saying that they cannot be made responsible for it. There has to be some kind of law. These sites should not be used as a platform, I agree that people should have right to express their opinions, but then blog sites should maintain their (bloggers’) identities, which should be revealed on demand.”

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When Google was forced reveal blogger’s identity

In January this year, Canadian-born model Liskula Cohen, a Vogue covergirl, had moved a New York court, demanding that Google reveal the name of the blogger who had called her a “shank” and an “old hag” so that she could sue the writer for defamation.

Cohen won the case, forcing Google to reveal the name of the blogger, who turned out to be a woman named Rosemary Port. Cohen sued her for $3 million.

But that wasn’t the end of trouble, for Port has now sued Google for $15 million for failing to protect her privacy.

The case sparked a debate. Celebrities say it will set a precedent, preventing people from posting offensive content of the Internet. However, rights activists claim that it breaches privacy of bloggers and that courts will now be flooded with frivolous litigation.