The Supreme Court on Friday directed a Karnataka court to conduct a fresh hearing on the petition seeking to restrain the publication of allegedly defamatory reports in the Dharmasthala mass burials case.
The Bench of Justice Rajesh Bindal and Justice Manmohan passed the order on a petition filed by Harshendra Kumar D, Secretary of the Dharmasthala Temple institutions, challenging the Karnataka High Court order that quashed the media gag imposed by a Bengaluru civil court on YouTube channel Kudla Rampage regarding its coverage in the Dharmasthala mass burial case.
Appearing for the temple administration, Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi argued that day after day, news channels and social media were running defamatory reports. He showed the Court posts of allegedly defamatory internet memes.
Noting that the temple could claim damages for such defamatory posts, the Apex Court questioned whether a media gag should be imposed.
It observed that gag orders were super injunctions, which could be passed only in the rarest of rare matters. Gag orders stifled free speech. In case a journalist came to know about a police officer possessing the number of a terrorist, this information could not be published. The present case involved a sanitation worker. If a super injunction was passed, even his statement could not be reported, added the Bench.
The top court of the country said since there was no documentary evidence, the matter could be considered by the trial court itself.
Rohatgi remarked that if a judge was shown accepting money, what would happen to the institution.
The Bench said it may issue orders to take down such memes. There has tobe some limit to it, but gag orders were not required.
The Apex Court asked Rohatgi to show the material to the trial court. Let them apply their mind independently and decide, it added.
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