BETWEEN PERSONA AND PLATFORM: PERSONALITY RIGHTS, FREE SPEECH, AND THE CONSTITUTIONAL ROLE OF SOCIAL MEDIA INTERMEDIARIES

Abstract [English]

The conflict between personality rights and freedom of speech is a big constitutional issue that has been fuelled by the development of digital technologies and social media. Personality rights ensure that people are not discriminated against the unauthorised use of their identity, name, image, and likeness etc. However, their growing enforcement, especially by means of takedown orders on social medias is at times coming in conflict with the right to free speech

This paper examines the evolving jurisprudence in India both judicially and legislatively. The courts have awarded wide-ranging injunctive relief in personality rights cases, at instances that has gone beyond commercial misuse to include satire, parody and criticism. This kind of growth is a threat that it will create a chilling effect on the democratic expression. This paper also raises the issue of over-censorship and privatization of speech.Using comparative insights on the United States and the Europe, this paper contends that a constitutional order responding to proportionality is appropriate to allow the protection of persona but not to compromise free and open-minded digital dialogue.