The Pune police have issued prohibitory orders against spreading misinformation, rumours, and communally sensitive messages on social media on issues related to ‘Jaystambh’ in the Perne village of the district and various events taking place Sunday.
According to officials, the prohibitory order has also been issued against putting up hoardings and flex boards with such content.
The police said the provisions of Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973, have been imposed for social media posts related to Jaystambh where a large number of followers have gathered to mark the 205th anniversary of the Battle of Koregaon Bhima. The provision empowers public officials to issue orders in urgent cases preempting any law and order issue.
A statement from the Pune police said misinformation, rumours, and communally sensitive messages on various media platforms, including text messages, WhatsApp, Twitter, Facebook, Telegram, Instagram etc and also flex board, hoardings, and posters with such content are strictly prohibited. Any action found in violation of these orders can be prosecuted under Indian Penal Code Section 188, the order states. The section pertains to disobedience to orders duly promulgated by a public servant.
The Pune Rural police have said over the past few days they have already identified several social media posts which can potentially lead to law and order situation and have initiated a process to delete them. “We are constantly monitoring the social media space and are appealing to citizens to refrain from making any such posts,” a police officer said.
Thousands of people have reached the Perne village to mark the anniversary of the Battle of Koregaon Bhima amidst heavy police deployment.
After one person was killed and several others were injured in the violence in the Koregaon Bhima on January 1, 2018, the district administration and the police put in stringent steps to prevent any untoward incident in the area.