Kerala HC orders notices to various newspapers, visual media

KOCHI: Kerala High Court today ordered issue of notices to various newspapers and visual media on a PIL seeking to prevent publication of oral observations made by judges during arguments of cases before them.

A division bench, comprising justices Thothathil B Radhakrishnan and Babu Mathew P Joseph, issued notices to the print and visual media on the PIL filed by Dejo Kappan.

The petitioner complained that the publication of oral observations during arguments was causing "grave loss of prestige of court before the general public" and sought framing of a code of conduct for the media.

Meanwhile, Kerala Television Federation, a consortium of Malayalam Television broadcasters, filed an impleading petition in the case, saying that imposing any further restrictions on the media amounts to an "invasion on the freedom of the fourth estate".

"There are sufficient safeguards to restrict the media. Parliament had enacted sufficient law for print and visual media with penal provisions," Federation director P J Antony, who is the Executive Editor of Jeevan TV, stated.