Delhi HC orders Centre to take down ‘false’ posts on CJI, ministers playing badminton at UK event

The Delhi High Court has mandated the Union government to swiftly remove viral social media posts that falsely allege Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Supreme Court judges, and Union ministers participated in a badminton tournament in London at public expense. The court deemed these posts malicious and damaging to judicial and executive institutions.

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The continued circulation and dissemination of such content has a direct bearing on the reputation of these institutions and, if not restrained forthwith, is likely to erode public confidence in the justice delivery system.

The vacation bench, presided over by Justice Tejas Karia, stated that the continued spread of such misinformation directly impacts the reputation of these bodies. The court warned that failure to act could erode public trust in the justice delivery system. The High Court was responding to a plea from the Badminton Association of India (BAI), which sought the removal of content alleging a large Indian delegation attended a UK badminton event.

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The posts were on the face of it, false, malicious and derogatory to the judiciary, the executive and the sport of badminton.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Centre, argued that the posts were entirely false and designed to create a fabricated narrative. Justice Karia indicated the government's authority to act against social media intermediaries involved in disseminating such information. The court's order highlighted a potential systematic misinformation campaign aimed at damaging the reputation of constitutional court judges and ministers. It noted that the content included incorrect factual assertions and unrelated photographs, attributing participation to individuals not present at the event.

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The impugned content does not merely amount to criticism, comment or fair reportage, but appears to be founded on demonstrably incorrect factual assertions, including the circulation of photographs unrelated to the event and the attribution of participation to persons who, on the material placed before this court, were not present at the event.

Further, the court pointed out that the Press Information Bureau (PIB) Fact Check had already debunked the claims, identifying the content as pertaining to a November 2025 tournament at Thyagaraj Stadium. The dissemination of such false information, especially against constitutional courts, carries the risk of causing irreversible damage to public confidence. The court's directive extends to social media platforms preserving and sharing uploaders' information for potential legal action by the government.

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The dissemination of such false and misleading information, particularly when directed against constitutional courts, has the potential to cause serious and irreversible injury to public confidence in the justice delivery system.