No legal void to regulate TV news content material: Centre to Bombay High Court

There was no void within the present legal framework on regulating the content material broadcast by the digital media and satisfactory mechanism existed for the aim, the Union authorities informed the Bombay High Court on Friday.

The submission was made in context of current reportage on the demise of actor Sushant Singh Rajput and PILs calling for restrain on media protection of the high-profile case.

Appearing for the Centre, Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Anil Singh informed a bench that there existed satisfactory statutory in addition to self-regulatory mechanism for the media, together with TV news channels, to observe whereas printing or broadcasting any news objects.

The ASG was responding to earlier queries posed by the bench of Chief Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice GS Kulkarni whereas listening to a bunch of PILs looking for that the press, notably tv news channels, be restrained of their reportage on the demise of Rajput.

The PILs, filed by senior counsel Aspi Chinoy, by activists, non-public residents and a gaggle of retired law enforcement officials, had additionally sought that TV news channels be stopped from conducting a media trial into the case.

Last month, the bench had requested the Union authorities if there existed any statutory mechanism to regulate the content material broadcast by the digital media akin to the regulatory mechanism exercised by the Press Council of India for the print media.

The bench had additionally requested on the time if there existed any vacuum in regulation on the problem, and had requested the Union authorities to make clear if the excessive court docket had the jurisdiction to body pointers for a similar.

On Friday, Mr Singh mentioned whereas the HC had the requisite jurisdiction, there was no want for any new statutory mechanism or pointers to be framed for the digital media.

He mentioned in addition to the statutory mechanisms that included the rules of the Programme Code of the Cable TV Network Act, an aggrieved occasion additionally had the choice of invoking the court docket’s intervention by the regulation of defamation, or the Contempt of Courts Act.

“There is statutory and self-regulatory mechanism in place. The Programme Code specifically states that transmission is allowed only if it confers with the code,” Mr Singh mentioned.

“I am submitting that on the point of guidelines, there is already a mechanism in place,” the ASG mentioned.

He mentioned that whereas the court docket may train its jurisdiction to body new pointers, the difficulty could be in implementing such guidelines.

Mr Singh added that the Contempt of Courts Act might be invoked in a case in pre-trial stage, too.

He mentioned that prejudicial media reporting on the stage of investigation may quantity to contempt of court docket if it interfered with the administration of justice.

“It (the Contempt of Courts Act) can be invoked from the time that an FIR is registered and trial becomes imminent,” Mr Singh mentioned.

“This is the view taken by the supreme court,” he mentioned.

“Today this high court frames guidelines, tomorrow, if another high court frames guidelines, and then another one does too, how will the guidelines be implemented?” Mr Singh mentioned.

Senior advocate Arvind Datar, who appeared for the National Broadcasters Standards Authority (NBSA), an impartial physique arrange by the National Broadcasters Association to look into complaints, mentioned there was no scarcity of regulatory framework at current.

Datar assured the court docket that the NBSA would quickly come out with pointers on media reportage on a case after registration of an FIR.

On earlier hearings, non-public TV news channels, which can be a celebration to the case, had argued that the self-regulatory mechanism was satisfactory and that no new mechanism or pointers have been required to management the media.

On Friday, the HC closed all arguments within the case and reserved its verdict.