SC rejects EC petition over reporting of Madras HC observations

Underlining that “a courtroom is a public space”, the Supreme Court on Thursday ruled that real-time reporting of court proceedings was an extension of the freedom of speech and expression of the press and that “public constitutional institutions must find better responses than to complain”.

The bench of justices Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud and MR Shah dismissed a plea by the Election Commission of India (ECI) to restrain media from reporting oral observations of the judges that the poll body was singularly responsible for a second wave in the country and that its officials should probably be tried on murder charges for allowing political parties to hold massive rallies without following Covid-19 norms.