Supreme Court tells govt to frame rules for live streaming hearings; order comes on plea filed by lawyer Indira Jaising.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court Wednesday said it will allow live streaming of court proceedings and has asked the Central government to frame rules.
The bench said rules required to balance rights of public and protect dignity of litigants will be placed soon.
“Sunlight is the best disinfectant”, said the three-judge bench, led by Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra.
The court delivered the order on a January plea filed by senior advocate Indira Jaising seeking live streaming of cases that had national importance. Jaising had submitted that citizens have a right to know the details, reasoning and arguments on issues that directly affected their rights.
The Central government had supported Jaising’s plea but expressed its reservation saying there are certain cases that are sensitive in nature and must not be streamed live.
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“Live Streaming of Court proceedings should be introduced as a pilot project in Court No. 1 and only in Constitution bench references. The success of this project will determine whether or not live streaming should be introduced in all courts in the Supreme Court and in Courts pan India,” Attorney General K.K. Venugopal had said during a hearing last month.
However, Venugopal had stressed to limit the power or temporarily suspend broadcasting if the measure interfered with the rights of the parties to a fair trial.
The top court recently allowed accredited journalists to carry mobile phones inside courtrooms allowing them to report news in real time. In the past one year, particularly during the Aadhaar and the Right to Privacy hearings, several Twitter handles live-tweeted the proceedings.