“Defamation: Forum of Catastrophic Convenience?”, 4 November 2018
Scope and Contents
The Upendra Baxi Collection is a digital collection that currently comprises a single series, Bibliography. This series is organised into several subseries, including Published Academic Articles, Published Book Chapters, Published Books, Published Book Reviews, Published Lectures and Presentations from Conferences and Seminars, Newspaper Articles, Letters and Correspondence (Mathura Rape Case), Other Media, and Media Articles by Others on the Mathura Rape Case.
Dates
- Publication: 4 November 2018
Creator
- Upendra Baxi (Author, Person)
- Sharunya (Archives Intern, Person)
- Meghashree Dev (Processing Archivist, Person)
Full Extent
From the Collection: 250 Megabytes
Language of Materials
English
Abstract
Baxi critiques the weaponization of criminal defamation laws to silence dissent and investigative journalism. He describes the practice of filing multiple cases in far-flung jurisdictions as "catastrophic convenience" for the powerful. The article argues that such "strategic lawsuits against public participation" (SLAPP) chill free speech and violate the spirit of Article 19. Baxi advocates for a higher threshold for admitting defamation complaints and suggests that the judiciary must prevent its processes from being used as a tool for "legal harassment" by those seeking to escape public accountability. In India Legal.
Topical
Repository Details
Part of the NLS Law and Society Archives Repository