Bhubaneswar: India is a country where one needs to develop a thick skin especially when it comes to public life. The country is so diverse that any kind of tiny , small conversation, incident or instance would hurt someone’s emotions. The trolling in social media platforms and criticism etc is a regular norm in today’s scenario. But the interference of social media and its users have become so penetrating to the lives of the people that it adversely affects the mental health, life of their families, and children adversely. There should be some serious actions taken against the social media defamations which could be pertained to criminal defamation cases, or certain criminal offense as it damages the personal spheres of the people. 

This norm of cancelled culture is taking a mode of over boarding on the lives of the people in the limelight. Unless somebody is threatening someone, hipping calumny and defaming somebody or preaching violence there should not be any attacking, judicial action or trolling. But to be specific, calumny and defamation is a personal issue not a state matter. The power of social media and the exposure of free speech is such a lethal element in the present times that the impact goes in a circular manner.

Amid this cancel culture scenario the political parties and the ruling party have this to a completely different direction. The moral policing on certain recent fiasco such as the Ranveer Allahbadia case, the political parties have totally lost the plot and made everything into a case of morality, and criminality. 

Free speech cannot be compromised unless someone threatens, preaches violence and harms any one. However, if our country has such a stringent law then it should be implemented and applied properly with proper parameters. But free speech cannot include hate speech that incites violence, riots etc or defamation of any individual. 

Our history has many instances where there have been mass killings, hate speeches, Hindu massacres, religious based prosecutions in the past. If these were counted there would be a shortage of lists of how many kings, invaders, muslim emperors, writers, leaders etc to have been prosecuted. The history is extremely complicated and has innumerable nasty episodes. Every time one instance of such from history is discussed there is noise. So if someone talks or discusses history, there can be debate whether that person should be charged or prosecuted for inciting violence or spreading hate speech.

-OdishaAge