WhatsApp group admin not liable for objectionable post by other member: HC

An administrator of a WhatsApp group cannot be held criminally liable for an objectionable post by another member of the group, the Nagpur bench of the Bombay High Court has held and quashed a case of sexual harassment lodged against a 33-year-old man.

The order was passed last month and a copy of it was made available on April 22.

A division bench headed by Justice Z A Haq and A B Borkar noted that an administrator of a WhatsApp group has only limited powers of adding or deleting members to the group and does not have the power to regulate or censor the content posted in the group.