The Madhya Pradesh High Court recently ruled that disciplinary action cannot be taken by the government against an employee for activities within a private WhatsApp group. Justifying the decision, the court asserted that forwarding a WhatsApp message in such a group does not equate to making it public, as these groups are inherently private and are typically formed by individuals with shared interests.
The decision was made in response to a petition filed by a government official, suspended by the commissioner of Indore division for forwarding a politically objectionable message within a WhatsApp group of fellow employees. The petitioner, ID Makrani, had initially received a show cause notice from the chief executive officer of Zila Panchayat in Alirajpur. In his defense, Makrani claimed that the forwarded message was inadvertently sent by his six-year-old daughter.
The court, after examining relevant documents, noted that Makrani had not updated his service book regarding the birth of his daughter but concluded that his plea was not false. It also emphasised that the group was private and unrelated to the officer’s governmental duties, and since the government had not established any official guidelines for employees to create WhatsApp groups, the activities within such groups cannot be subject to serious disciplinary rules.
Additionally, the court rejected the state’s argument that forwarding a political message was not expected from an employee. It emphasised that such actions could not be questioned under service rules.
Furthermore, the Court highlighted that forwarding a message within a WhatsApp group does not necessarily reflect the sender’s personal opinion. It explained that messages within these groups are confined to their members and cannot be considered public.
Additionally, the Court also noted that WhatsApp groups are typically formed by friends or like-minded individuals, and adding a third person without permission is not allowed.
The judge concluded by stating that individuals unwilling to be part of a group have the option to exit and delete the group from their accounts.
As a result, the Court quashed the suspension order and the charge sheet issued against the petitioner.
