BJP Leader Jailed, Fined For Calling Women Journalists "Ugly", "Illiterate"

Tamil actor and BJP leader S Ve Shekher was sentenced to one month in jail today by a court in Chennai for posting derogatory, vulgar and abusive remarks about women journalists on social media back in 2018. A fine of Rs 15,000 was also imposed on him by the court.

While the actor turned politician has paid the fine, the court decided to suspend his jail sentence to allow him to appeal in a higher court. The court also observed that allegations against S Ve Shekher have been proved beyond doubt.

The verdict comes after Madras High Court refused to quash multiple criminal cases against the BJP leader in 2023.

S Ve Shekher had shared a post on Facebook in 2018 that contained derogatory remarks about a woman journalist who had objected after she was patted on the cheek by then Tamil Nadu Governor Banwarilal Purohit at an official programme. The post said that the Governor "should wash his hands with phenyl" for touching her.

The post, which was later deleted by S Ve Shekher, also called women journalists "illiterate", "stupid" and "ugly", and led to a huge outrage against him. After deleting the post, he apologised and said that he shared the post without fully reading its contents.

S Ve Shekher presented the same defence in the court. However, his argument was dismissed on the grounds that he should have exercised social responsibility while sharing the post online.

S Ve Shekher was elected as an MLA from AIADMK, before switching to Congress and eventually joining BJP.