Supreme Court asks govt to prepare manual for police officers on media briefing, says need to avoid ‘media trial’

Supreme Court directs govt to draft manual on dos/don'ts of police briefing media in sensitive cases to protect rights of accused/victim. Manual to balance right to info, fair trial, competent investigation & right to privacy/dignity. Court to hear case in January.

The Supreme Court on September 13 directed the government to draft a manual instructing police officers on the dos and don’ts of briefing the media, especially in sensitive cases, while protecting the sanctity of the investigation and the rights of both the accused and the victim.

A Bench headed by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud said police briefings should be tailored to the necessities and peculiarities of each individual case. Care should be taken to avoid police briefings to pave the way for media trials which pre-determine the guilt of an accused. A person is innocent until proven guilty by a court of law.

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Biased reportage would harm the reputations of both the accused and the victims. It may moreover derail the investigation. “The right to privacy is also a casualty,” the Court noted.

The Bench said the previous manual was over a decade old. Amicus curiae, senior advocate Gopal Sankaranaraynan said there has since been sweeping changes on the ground brought about mainly by the advent of social media. The Court agreed that it was important to balance the right to information, the rights of fair trial, competent investigation and the right to privacy and dignity of the accused and the victim involved in a case.

The Court asked the Home Ministry to prepare the manual, with inputs from the State police chiefs and the National Human Rights Commission, within three months. It scheduled the next hearing in January.

A similar order for media briefing guidelines had been passed in 2016 by a Supreme Court Bench headed by then Chief Justice J.S. Khehar. At the time, the Supreme Court had observed that the guidelines should take into consideration the “rights of the accused so that their rights are not prejudiced during trial and also the sensitive rights of victims”.