SC stays conviction of Mid-Day scribes, admits appeal

Rediff.com Last updated on: September 28, 2007 12:35 IST http://www.rediff.com/news/report/mid/20070928.htm The Supreme Court on Friday stayed the arrest of four journalists of Mid-Day sentenced to four months imprisonment for their alleged scandalous reports against the former Chief Justice of India Y K Sabharwal. A Bench of Justices Arijit Pasayat and P Sathasivam also admitted the appeal filed by the daily, challenging the conviction imposed by the Delhi high court on September 21. The apex court, however, rejected the impleadment application moved by 27 prominent citizens who wanted to be heard in the matter. The apex court, while rejecting the intervention application, asserted that the applicants had no locus standi as the question was restricted to whether the journalists had committed contempt or not. While admitting the appeal, the apex court said, it was appointing senior counsel and former additional solicitor general A R Andhiarjuna as amicus curiae in the matter. Twenty-seven prominent citizens had on Thursday moved the Supreme Court pleading they be meted out the same punishment that might be awarded to the four Mid-Day journalists for their alleged scandalous reports against the former chief justice of India Y K Sabharwal. According to the applicants, the conviction of the four journalists was not only an assault on the freedom of speech, but would also send a wrong signal to the people. The petition had claimed that the stand taken by the high court was "erroneous and antithetical to the fundamental principles of our republican democracy and our Constitution." In their application, they had prayed "mete out the same punishment to the applicants as will be meted out to the Mid-Day journalists." The signatories to the application included Magsaysay awardee Arvind Kejariwal, former civil servant Harsh Mander, retired IPS officer K S Subramaniam, former bureaucrat S P Shukla, Amit Bhaduri, Prof Arun Kumar and others. On September 19, the Supreme Court had refused to stay the contempt proceedings initiated by the Delhi high court against four senior journalists of city daily Mid-Day for publishing articles against the former chief justice of India. The high court on September 11, had found editor of Mid-Day M K Tayal, S K Akhtar (the then publisher), Vitusha Oberoi (resident editor) and Irfan (cartoonist) guilty of contempt of court. In their special leave petition filed before the apex court against their conviction, the journalists had submitted that the high court's order was "unreasonable" and "unjustified" and the tabloid had published the article on the basis of documentary evidence. They had also attached clippings of the newspaper in which some former chief justices had opined that there should be judicial probe into the allegations labelled against the former chief justice Sabharwal. The controversial article published on May 18 alleged that Justice Sabharwal's order on the sealing issue had been passed for the benefit of his sons who were engaged in the real estate business.