Harish Salve (File photo)
NEW DELHI: Renowned Attorneys Kapil sibal and Harish Hail on Saturday he said that the media trial not only damaged reputation and hindered investigations, but also impeded foreign investment in India in some cases.
Speaking at Ram Jethmalani’s first commemorative lecture on ‘Pros and Cons of Media Judgment’, Salve said that media activism is welcome where systemic apathy and police indifference fails the poor when they confront the rich, influential and politicians. “He does a great job when he takes up the cause of the poor that the system and the police failed,” he said.
“But it becomes a problem when the rule of noise displaces the rule of law. The media rarely believe in the law of evidence and often campaign to shame through targeted leaks from law enforcement agencies. Research. Reputation in India matters little like privacy. This gap has to be contained if India is to become a responsible republic, “he said.
The former attorney general and now the queen’s attorney said “the media trial, as it prevails today, not only does not favor the rule of law but is also a major impediment to investment in India.” He suggested creating a court headed by a retired judge to quickly decide defamation cases, with an outer limit of six months, to rein in the wandering media.
He said that only the courts can control the media by drawing the ‘Laxman Rekha’ and hold it accountable.
Sibal said sensationalism with little regard for the facts has become the order of the day for media coverage. “Look at the telecommunications sector. The media resorted to sensationalism in the coverage that marred the reputation of many who were later found not guilty by the trial court. But the biggest consequence of this was that the robust sector that was giving good income to the government it was reduced to one in debt, “he said.
Sibal said the trial in the parallel media affects ongoing investigations and, driven by social media, also affects the sanctity of the trial. He said that to bring holiness to media coverage, big business must get out of the media business.
Leading advocate AM Singhvi said aberrations in media coverage are getting bigger and more severe as they often resort to “verbal terrorism, visual extremism and the tyranny of content.”
At the conference hosted by Mahesh Jethmalani, the late Dean of Criminal Law Ram Jethmalani received praise from Judge NV Ramana, Attorney General KK Venugopal, Attorney General Tushar Mehta, and eminent attorneys Fali S Nariman, Soli J Sorabjee, and many others.
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