New Delhi: A public interest litigation filed in the Supreme Court has sought directions for a National Minimum Protocol to ensure the safety of journalists and media personnel covering public protests, and has demanded an impartial investigation into alleged attacks on reporters during recent demonstrations at Jantar Mantar.
The writ petition, filed in a personal capacity by advocate Narendra Kumar Goswami, asks the court to direct measures protecting journalists, camerapersons and media workers from targeted mob violence, sexualised abuse, intimidation and obstruction while reporting. It also seeks preservation of electronic evidence, including CCTV footage, police videography, drone and body camera recordings, wireless and control room logs, deployment rosters, medical records and original video files voluntarily provided by media organisations.
The plea requests a time bound probe led by officers unconnected with crowd control deployments, protection for victims and witnesses, and a status report setting out complaints received, FIRs registered, evidence preserved and investigative steps taken. It also seeks that the PIL be tagged to related matters or treated as a companion petition.
Referring to incidents between July 18 and July 23 around Jantar Mantar, the petition cited reports of assaults on Times Now reporter Dev Kotak, attacks on other journalists and camerapersons, episodes of intimidation, and allegations of sexualised abuse and death threats against a woman reporter. The filing clarified that such reports are not presented as facts but to stress the need for evidence preservation and independent inquiry.
“The Constitution protects criticism of the media, boycott of a channel, peaceful slogans and robust public disagreement. It does not protect assault, criminal intimidation, gendered abuse, snatching, wrongful restraint, rioting or destruction of recording equipment,” the plea said, adding that public distrust of media outlets cannot justify violence against individual journalists.
The petitioner said the relief sought is narrowly limited to evidence preservation, victim protection and neutral accountability, and does not attempt to adjudicate competing narratives about the protests. The filing noted related petitions alleging excessive police force against student protesters are due for listing before the Supreme Court on July 27, and that proceedings on the Delhi incidents are pending in the Delhi High Court.
Relying on Supreme Court precedents, the plea argued the state has a constitutional duty to protect lawful expression and preserve evidence. It also said a representation requesting evidence preservation, a neutral investigation and a national media safety protocol was submitted to authorities on July 24 but no comprehensive response had been received, prompting the PIL.
“The petition has therefore been framed not as a political counter narrative but as a constitutional plea for neutral accountability: protect peaceful protest; protect journalists; protect police personnel acting lawfully; prosecute individual violence; investigate unlawful force; and preserve the evidence required to distinguish one from the other,” the filing stated.
(Inputs from IANS)