Former Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud on Sunday suggested that in the age of social media trolling, judges should be trained to handle the internet. He also joked that he was trolled on social media not once, but several times during his tenure – something he even said during his farewell speech earlier this year.

“Maybe judges should also be trained. In the age of social media, how are you going to deal with the internet and trolling? So I think it’s necessary for all judges to undergo training,” he said while speaking to NDTV’s Samvidhan @75. event.

According to Mr. Chandrachudpeople are now living in a new normal called “post-truth society”.

“Times have changed today… In 1950, there was no social media and no Internet. Today, the Constitution has gone through a process of 75 years of evolution. We are now living in a new normal – some call it the post office.” -a society of truth,” he told NDTV.

Asked if trolling on social media affects judges, Mr. Chandrachud said, “Yes…I have been trolled on social media not once but several times.”

The former chief justice was the subject of several troll attacks during his mandate.

According to Mr. Chandrachud, social media is not only a form of communication but also a powerful means of influencing society.

“…Because obviously today there are special interest groups, pressure groups that try to use social media to influence the minds of the courts and the outcome of cases. Every citizen has the right to understand what a decision is based on and to express their opinions on the court’s decisions But when it goes beyond the court’s decisions and targets individual judges, it kind of raises fundamental questions: is it really. freedom of speech and expression?

The former chief justice said that currently, everyone’s attention span on social media is 20 seconds with the rise of “short films” – short-form videos on YouTube, similar to “reels” on Instagram.

“Even I watch them sometimes now,” he laughed.

“So everyone wants to form an opinion in 20 seconds about what they see on YouTube or any social media platform. This poses a serious danger because the decision-making process of the courts is much more serious. It is really nuanced that no one has the patience or tolerance today on social media to understand, and this is a very serious problem facing the Indian justice system,” Mr. Chandrachud said.

Citing an example of court cases being discussed on social media, Mr Chandrachud said: “Judges need to be very careful that they are constantly subjected to this barrage of special interest groups trying to change decisions about what happens in the courts. “.

“Ultimately, it’s fundamental values ​​of freedom of speech and expression that are involved. So, speaking for myself, I have been a proponent of giving maximum freedom to freedom of speech and expression. expression. That’s really what the Constitution is pretty much,” he said.