Apenisa Waqairadovu 
Kishore Kumar.
Magistrate Seini Puamau has issued a strong warning to social media users who engage in uncivilized and harmful rhetoric.
She made the statement while sentencing infamous social media commentator Kishore Kumar, who pleaded guilty to making vulgar comments against Employment Minister Agni Deo Singh.
Although Kishore Kumar was spared immediate jail time as he is receiving a 12-month sentence suspended for three years, Magistrate Puamau made it clear that anyone committing similar offenses will face the full force of the law.
She warned that individuals without any mental health condition who behave like Kumar can expect a criminal record and possible imprisonment.
Magistrate Puamau says one cannot do in a virtual space what they are not allowed to do in a real space.
She stresses that this is the standard outlined under Section 24(1)(a) of the Online Safety Act 2018 and that it must be upheld.
The Suva Magistrate formally entered the conviction against Kumar, stating that the matter was not a minor one.
She says Kumar’s action was not nice and falls below the standard expected of civilized and decent people.
Meanwhile, Kumar remains in remand for a separate case
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