New Delhi (ILNS): An application has been filed in the Supreme Court seeking orders to restrain electronic and print media from broadcasting/publishing any material that may lead to a media trial, directly or indirectly hampering the investigation in the Sushant Singh Rajput death case.
The application has been drawn by Advocate Rajesh Inamdar and Shahshwat Anand and filed by Pankaj Kandhari.
It has been alleged that the broadcasters have telecast highly sensitive/confidential information in connection with the ongoing criminal investigations where the news outlets have made various statements based on purported disclosure statements made by the accused and other witnesses to the investigating officers, attributing the source of information to be from the investigating agencies. The petitioners have submitted that such information to which only the officers or the person being in question should be privy have reached the channels.
It has further been submitted that the CBI, ED, and NCB have filed their counter-affidavits stating that no information from their side was leaked to the media and they have been conducting the investigation proficiently.
It has further been submitted that if no information was leaked by the agencies then in such circumstances why none of the investigating agencies have taken any actions against media channels for broadcasting the sensitive private conversations recorded by them.
Hence, in such circumstances, the petitioner has submitted that it becomes imperative to direct the broadcasters to disclose the source from where the private sensitive information was received and to direct an inquiry to be conducted into misconduct if any of the officials of the investigating agencies or by the accused or the witnesses.
The application has been filed in the case filed by Nilesh Navlakha raising concerns about the media coverage pertaining to the unnatural death of Rajput which according to the petitioner tantamount to media trial.
-India Legal Bureau