The Evening Wrap: Cannot stop media reports on court observations, says SC
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Cannot stop media reports on court observations, says SC |
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Media cannot be stopped from reporting oral remarks made by judges during a court hearing. The honest and full reportage of these comments gives the public an insight into whether judges are genuinely applying their minds to resolve a crisis, the Supreme Court told a "hurt" Election Commission of India (ECI) today. The ECI had complained to the Supreme Court about certain oral comments made by a Division Bench of the Madras High Court. The HC judges had accused the ECI of being solely responsible for the super-spread of Covid-19 through uncontrolled election rallies and campaigning. Instead of patting the EC officials on their backs, the HC judges had said the ECI should be charged with "murder". Soon after, a troubled ECI had approached the HC to take back its words and restrain the media from reporting the comments as FIRs for murder were registered against the poll body officials. But the HC had, on April 30, refused to budge, saying there were more pressing issues at hand. "We cannot expect the media not to report dialogues. Oral observations are as important as orders... Unfolding of process of judicial thinking is equally of interest to the public," Justice D.Y. Chandrachud addressed the ECI, represented by senior advocate Rakesh Dwivedi. Justice Chandrachud, with by Justice M.R. Shah on the Bench, described the media as a "powerful watchdog". "Public interest is not limited to judgments, but also the raising of questions in a court hearing, the dialogue between the Bar and the Bench... All of these show the public whether there was a genuine application of mind by judges... Had I been in the Bar, I would be very worried if judges don't ask questions," Justice Chandrachud said. The Bench said the ECI's prayer to stop media from reporting the comments from the Bench was simply "far-fetched". "We cannot say that the media cannot report the contents of the discussions in a court of law. Discussions in a court of law are of equal public interest, and I would put it on the same pedestal as the final order. Discussion in the court is a dialogue between the Bar and the Bench... We wish that media should report fully what is happening in court. It brings a sense of accountability. Media reporting would also show that we are dispensing our duties fully," Justice Chandrachud said. When Mr. Dwivedi complained that the HC should not have accused another constitutional authority like the ECI of "murder", Justice Chandrachud said judges were humans too. Their comments may be borne out of frustration, but were certainly made for the cause of larger public interest. Justice Shah said the ECI should take oral observations of judges in the right spirit. 23 Covid-19 patients die in Karnataka hospital, triggering fears of oxygen shortageA surge in the deaths of Covid-19 patients in Chamarajanagar in Karnataka has sparked panic among the people regarding oxygen scarcity. Against a daily average of eight to 10 deaths, a total of 23 Covid-19 patients died late on Sunday. "All the patients who died were on ventilator and had co-morbidities. The deaths were not necessarily due to oxygen shortage," Deputy Commissioner of Chamarajanagar M.R. Ravi told The Hindu. Even though he clarified that the deaths were not linked to non-availability of oxygen, Ravi said it was difficult to source oxygen from Mysuru. The suppliers, who were under pressure to meet Mysuru's requirements, were finding it difficult to ensure regular supply to Chamarajanagar. Education Minister S. Suresh Kumar, who is in charge of Chamarajnagar district, announced has ordered a death audit of the tragedy. In a hurriedly-convened press conference, he said, "Not all deaths, which occurred over 24 hours, were due to oxygen shortage. A death audit will reveal the exact cause," he said. However, he admitted that there was a shortage of oxygen to the district and there was a crisis for two hours post mid-night on Sunday. The district, categorised as one of the most backward in Karnataka, is dependent on neighbouring Mysuru for oxygen supply. The minister said that he had requested the Chief Secretary to ensure a regular supply of oxygen to the district. "I am aware that Mysuru has increasing demand. But that does not mean that Chamarajnagar can be denied supply," he said. He said an investigation will be conducted as to how oxygen supply was cut short. "Those responsible will face consequences," he said. EC official was threatened, will approach courts over Nandigram poll result, says MamataTrinamool Congress (TMC) chairperson Mamata Banerjee on Monday said that her party will approach the court on the Nandigram election results. Speaking to journalists outside her residence, Banerjee said that the returning officer for Nandigram was threatened that he could lose his life if he ordered a recounting of the votes for the constituency. While she lost from Nandigram, her party has won 213 of the 292 seats that went to polls in West Bengal. "Everywhere there is one result, at one place it is different. Then suddenly the server went slowly for four hours, and then there was load-shedding for forty minutes. They have changed many things, including machines," Banerjee said. She asked what grounds the Election Commission had to refuse a recounting of votes. "Anyone can demand recounting of votes. What stake does the Election Commission have to deny re-counting," Banerjee asked. Banerjee also brought to fore a message that the returning officer (RO) had allegedly sent to an acquaintance. In the message, the RO had allegedly said that his life would be in danger if he ordered a recount. "Look at the situation. The RO says there is a threat on his life," she said, as she asked a journalist to read out the message loud. The Nandigram Assembly seat had kept both the TMC and the BJP on tenterhooks till late on Sunday evening. After the end of 17 rounds of counting, the ECI website showed that BJP's Suvendu Adhikari had defeated Banerjee by a margin of 1,956 votes. Meanwhile, TMC supporters continued to protest outside the counting center in Purba Medinipur district. Banerjee said that the EC should ensure that the EVMs used for polling in Nandigram are properly preserved. Election Commission should be disbanded: CongressDeputy Leader of the Congress in the Rajya Sabha, Anand Sharma, on Monday lashed out at the Election Commission of India (EC) for being 'partisan' and asserted that the present poll body should be disbanded as it had "betrayed the trust of voters". He also suggested that the Supreme Court should decide the criteria for a person to qualify for the position of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and Election Commissioner (EC). "The present Election Commission should be disbanded and the actions of its members probed. The EC has disgraced itself and betrayed the voters' trust. A Constitution bench of the Supreme Court should decide on the composition, qualifying criteria for the appointment of the CEC and the ECs, and firm guidelines for the conduct of free and fair elections as per the Constitution," Sharma said in a statement, a day after results of Assembly elections to four States and one Union Territory came out. The senior Congress leader said that the conduct of the EC during the recent elections has raised serious concerns and accused the Commission of violating its Constitutional mandate under Article 324 to conduct free and fair polls. "Blatantly partisan, its actions in Bengal were shocking and condemnable. There have been instances where it acted as a willing accomplice of the BJP," he said. Sharma said that the EC must be held accountable for "fuelling" the surge in Covid-19 cases and increasing the suffering of the people by allowing unrestricted mass rallies and violations of COVID protocols. Covid Watch: Numbers and DevelopmentsThe number of reported coronavirus cases from India stood at 2,00,86,109 at the time of publishing this newsletter, with the death toll at 2,20,184. As the second wave of coronavirus continues to engulf several parts of the country, the Centre on Monday said some states are showing very early signs of plateauing in daily new cases, while some remain a cause of concern. Addressing a news briefing, Joint Secretary in the Health Ministry Lav Agarwal said 13 States, including Delhi, Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra and Punjab, are showing early signs of plateauing, while States like Bihar, Rajasthan, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Tripura and West Bengal are showing an increasing trend in daily cases. Amid a shortage of medical oxygen in the country, he said the government is exploring the feasibility of converting existing nitrogen plants to produce oxygen. Chhattisgarh, where 15,583 cases were reported on April 29, recorded 14,087 fresh cases on May 2. Similar was the case with Delhi, Daman and Diu, Gujarat, Jharkhand, Ladakh, Lakshadweep, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Punjab, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. He said 12 States had active cases of more than a lakh each. They were Maharashtra, Gujarat, Delhi, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu. In Brief:The Centre has worked out a tight, new deadline for the ₹20,000 crore Central Vista project, according to which the Prime Minister's new residence shall be completed by December 2022. The Central Vista projected has been declared an "essential service" so that construction work can continue uninterrupted even as the national capital remains under lockdown and continues to reel under oxygen shortage amid an alarming surge on new cases of Covid-19. The Union government on Monday instructed all centrally funded institutions to postpone all offline exams scheduled in May. "In the context of existing situation, I urge all the heads of Centrally Funded Institutions to postpone the offline examinations scheduled in the month of May 2021. The online examinations may however continue," wrote Secretary, Ministry of Human Resource and Development, Amit Khare, in a letter to all Vice-Chancellors. The Centre will review the situation in the first week of June and convey its decision to various institutions. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. |
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