CM meme arrest sparks freedom of speech debate

RANCHI: The arrest of a Ranchi-based entrepreneur Sarabpreet Singh for making a video mocking chief Raghubar Das has triggered a debate on social media about freedom of speech. The video, shared across social media platforms, including Facebook and Twitter, was a product of Made In Ranchi, a business owned by Sarabpreet.
Jharkhand Police ADG and spokesperson R K Mallick said: "Singh was taken into custody after a complaint for infringement of copyright was filed by a local dealer of Mentos in Ranchi. The video used the format of a popular advertisement of Mentos India and he is currently in judicial custody."

The 32-second video, which mimicked the company's famous campaign, "Dimag Ki Batti Jala De", has not been taken down from the Internet yet. The video contains a three-second video clip of Das, from the budget session of the Jharkhand Assembly where he takes on the opposition leaders. The video begins with a cut of a popular song 'Mai toh raste se jaa rha tha' from Govinda and Karisma Kapoor-starrer 'Coolie No 1'. The video cuts at the 'Mirchi Lagi' phrase and uses voice overs from a Mentos India TVC format in the footage from the state assembly.

After Sarabpreet was arrested on Wednesday, a Ranchi-based Facebook Page 'Ranchi Mall' uploaded a post demanding his freedom. This spiked a debate on freedom of speech among the city netizens. The post, with hashtag #FreeSarabpreet, had over 2,000 comments till Thursday evening and was shared more than 150 times.

Dinesh Kumar Prasad, a Facebook user from the city, wrote: "This is infringement of freedom of expression." Advocating the cause, Md Kamal Akhtar, another user, wrote: "Yes it is a democracy and every person has a right to express his/her own idea, views to the people. If the government suppresses it, it is illegal."

The charges lodged against Singh are under Section 419 (impersonation), 420 (fraud) and 468 (forgery). Two charges under Trademark Act of 1999 and IT Act each have also been filed against him.

The debate on the matter on social media has fuelled with many taking up the misuse of social media as a cause of concern. "Abusing anybody is not freedom of expression and such type of men should be handled with an iron hand," wrote Prem Prakash Singh, another user.