Meet the cartoonist threatened with jail for offending India’s establishment

Rachita Taneja’s hugely popular stickman web comic series has spawned murals, posters and a lot of trolling. Now she is being accused of contempt by the highest court in the land. She speaks to Stuti Mishra

Rachita Taneja, a web comic creator, has been booked under the charges of contempt of court after making a satirical comic (Photo/Rachita Taneja)

When India’s highest court granted bail to a firebrand right-wing news anchor after fast-tracking his hearing, cartoonist Rachita Taneja responded with a satirical drawing to highlight his apparent state backing and hold up a mirror to power, something she does every day through her stick-figure comic series.

Taneja is used to the vitriol she receives daily from internet trolls. This time, however, the pushback came from the Supreme Court itself.

The 29-year-old satirist was charged with contempt of court, and could face up to six months in prison, after her cartoon highlighted the fact that as Republic TV’s Arnab Goswami walked out of jail, many other journalists without such good connections to the establishment were left languishing in detention, often for months, without trial.