Ipsita Mishra
Media being the fourth pillar of the Constitution plays a very important role and hence the readers should have complete knowledge about the entire controversy. The corrupt practices or the public voices will be formed by the media. Jindal Steel pleaded that there was criminal defamation by the media group, comprising of the editor, editor in chief and the publisher, since they had published malicious, false and defamatory materials and did not seek any verification too. 4 coal blocks were allotted to the JSPL where CAG has mentioned about 57 blocks. However the trail court on grounds of defamation stated that defamation cannot be used as weapon to stop critics rejected it. The readers have a right to know everything owing to national and public interest. The media has a legal, social and legal duty to perform which the court should perform. The metropolitan magistrate also made comments that whether it was used in fair practice or some extraneous factors were used are a matter of concern since the natural resources of the country as well as the hard earned money of the tax payers are invested in it.
The public has a right to know what happens in the court. How can the public know the right answers if at times the courtroom is closed for testimony on that question? It is the duty to intervene in cases where a judge and the lawyers from both sides determine for the public what the public has a right to know in the midst of a trial. The texture of Indian democracy is very complicated and hence people have lost faith in the democratic system. The corruptions, lack of ethics etc have taken root in system in India. People say, “Ya tho jack ho, ya cheque ho (You must have contacts to use or money for bribes).” This is in the extent of apathy and cynicism. Internal accountability in India is only of the rulers to each other. There should be steps towards self governance. The right to information, however, forces equal standards of transparency and accountability on the users of information.