Supreme Court calls for guidelines on media reporting in criminal cases

The Supreme Court has expressed strong concern about “media trials” characterised by biased reporting that can lead to public suspicion of a person’s guilt in a criminal case, according to a report by NDTV. Therefore, the court has directed the Union Home Ministry to create guidelines for police to follow during press briefings regarding criminal cases. For this, the ministry has been given a three-month timeline to prepare a comprehensive manual.

A bench led by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud stressed the importance of sensitising police personnel to the impact of media coverage on the administration of justice.