INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
MADURAI: The Madras high court emphasised Thursday the "right to vent" for employees who may have concerns with their management, while
quashing a charge memo against a Tamil Nadu Grama Bank employee for posting on WhatsApp critical messages mocking the bank's administrative
decisions.Justice GR Swaminathan said it's natural for members of an organisation to have grievances, and allowing them to express can have
However, management intervention should occur only if the organisation's image is genuinely affected
He underlined that suppressing such expressions would amount to thought-policing and acknowledged that in today's digitally connected world,
principles applicable to private conversations are relevant to encrypted virtual platforms with limited access.The case revolved around A
Lakshminarayanan, an office assistant (multi-purpose) at the Tamil Nadu Grama Bank's Arumuganeri branch in Tuticorin
Lakshminarayanan, a trade union activist and bank workers' union office-bearer, faced disciplinary action for his critical WhatsApp post
He challenged the action by filing a petition with the Madurai bench of the high court.The judge noted that the bank had issued a circular
in 2019 to regulate employee conduct on social media
The judge highlighted the potential invasion of privacy because of advanced technology like Pegasus
"Courts may dread such a scenario, but then would still firmly say that charges cannot be framed on the strength of information gleaned
through such means," he said
However, the content shared on end-to-end encrypted platforms should remain within legal boundaries.Concluding that the petitioner's
WhatsApp messages did not violate the bank's conduct rules, Justice Swaminathan quashed the charge memo
He highlighted that private criticisms shared in an informal setting would not have been scrutinised if they occurred outside the workplace
The same standard should apply to an exchange "among a group of employees on a virtual platform with restricted access", the court ruled.
