By TwoCircles.net Staff Reporter,
New Delhi: Two Supreme Court Advocates have written to the Chief Justice of India urging him to take suo moto cognizance against English Daily DNA, for allegedly tarnishing the image of Judiciary and Honorable Judges of Supreme Court by inserting irrelevant photograph of CJI with Lady officials in background in an article.
The two petitioners are Advocate Vinod Tiwari, enrolled on the roll of Bar Council of Maharashtra & Goa and is a member of Supreme Court Bar Association, while Advcate Naushad Ahmed Khan is enrolled on the roll of Bar Council of Delhi. He is a Member of Supreme Court Bar Association.
The petitioners have appealed the CJI to take suo moto cognizance of the said Article and photographs for causing the dis-reputation and deliberately lowering down the dignity of the Apex Court and its Judges and to further treat their emailed letter as petition.
In an article published in English daily DNA, dated 21.11.2013 on an editorial page no. 8 as a leading prominent article captioned “Poor Judge of Character”, purported to be written and authored by Delhi HC Advocate Nandita Rao.
The article pertained to an ongoing unfortunate controversial issue of alleged Sexual Harassment Case of an intern Law Graduate at the hands of then sitting Judge of this Hon’ble Court, arising out of a blog posting made by the victim in last week.
DNA is an English newspaper being published from Mumbai, Pune, Ahmedabad, Jaipur and Indore and largely circulated in India and across the globe through its e-paper on internet in its edition.
Although the petitioners are not really bothered about the content of the article since the matter is sub judice, what has constrained them though is the “unfortunate and irrelevant insertion and publication of photographs of the Your Lordship, that too accompanying a Lady Official along with the photograph of Hon’ble Apex Court, though it’s totally irreverent and uncalled for even by mistake in light of the contents in a story.”
The petitioners say that they have “reason to believe that with the unfortunate linking and irrelevance in publication of photographs,” the author, editor, printer, publisher and the owners of the said Newspaper have “acted in a most irresponsible and collusive manner.”
In the letter to the CJI, the petitioners write, that it “is an attempt to lowering down the respect and dignity of entire judiciary and to take it granted that nothing can happen even if print media tarnished the image and reputation of the judiciary as well as the Apex Court and its Hon’ble Judges.”
The petitioners have hence urged the CJI to take cognizance for appropriate proceedings and initiate further steps to “protect the Judiciary and Democracy from such elements killing the object and the purpose of doctrine of the Freedom of Expression as guaranteed by Constitution of our Country.”