In a legal battle that has emerged from the Malayalam film industry’s ongoing efforts to curb online movie reviewers, the Kerala police took a significant step by filing an FIR against a group of vloggers, along with Facebook and YouTube. This action comes in response to a complaint from a filmmaker regarding a negative review of his work. The FIR was registered on the same day that the state’s police chief presented a protocol to the high court aimed at addressing issues related to motivated, malicious, and negative movie reviews.
The high court, in its interim order concerning a petition filed by Mubeen Rauf, the director of the film ‘Aromalinte Adyathe Pranayam’, made use of the term ‘review bombing.’ Rauf alleged that a set of vloggers had initiated a negative campaign against his movie without even watching it.
The newly established police protocol outlines specific actions to be taken when handling such complaints while respecting an individual’s freedom of expression. It provides guidance for investigating officers to differentiate between genuine reviews and ‘review bombing’ driven by malicious intentions.
The protocol specifies that if a prima facie cognizable offense is evident in cases of complaints alleging motivated and calculated movie reviews with allegations of extortion, intimidation, threats, and blackmail, the police should ensure proper registration of an FIR as per Section 154 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
In cases where complaints lack clear allegations of cognizable offenses, the police should examine whether the complaint relates to a movie review that might potentially violate defamation or obscenity laws. The protocol also addresses the possibility of criminal defamation charges under Section 499 of the IPC if false statements in reviews harm individuals’ reputations, particularly if these statements are knowingly false or made with reckless disregard for the truth.
The police chief acknowledges the challenge of officers agreeing with negative reviews and advises against registering a criminal defamation case unless false statements with intent to harm reputation are involved. Additionally, the protocol emphasizes that online harassment, cyberbullying, or abusive behavior associated with review bombing may violate relevant legal provisions, suggesting consultation with legal experts when necessary.
The protocol offers advisory guidance to investigating officers and outlines criteria for distinguishing between malicious reviews and genuine expressions of opinion. It advises officers to examine the reviewer’s profile, history, and consistency, emphasizing that genuine reviewers typically offer diverse and consistent reviews on various topics. Review bombers, on the other hand, may lack evidence of legitimate viewing and often post extreme or uniform reviews. The timing, language, tone, and relevance to movie content are also highlighted as indicators of review authenticity.
In summary, the Kerala police’s protocol is designed to address the issues arising from negative movie reviews, emphasizing the need to protect freedom of expression while differentiating between genuine critiques and malicious ‘review bombing’ activities.
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