Four times courts in Karnataka have passed gag orders against media in last 5 months

In a 31-page order pronounced on May 6, the Supreme Court of India upheld the rights of the media to report and disseminate issues and events, including court proceedings. The observations were made in the context of questions raised regarding right of media to report oral remarks made by judges. .While the top court waxed eloquent about media rights as integral to freedom of speech under Article 19, the courts in Karnataka have in the past five months passed at least four ex-parte gag orders restraining media organisations and social media platforms from telecasting news against certain individuals..Below are the four instance of courts restraining media citing rights of individuals, mostly politicians from the ruling BJP..67 media houses restrained from publishing defamatory content against six State Ministers A Karnataka court, on March 6, restrained sixty-seven media houses from airing or publishing any defamatory content against six Karnataka ministers belonging to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in relation the alleged Ramesh Jarikiholi sex-for-job scandal..Additional City Civil and Sessions Judge, Abdulrahiman A Nandgadi granted ex-parte ad-interim injunction in favour of the six ministers and restrained media houses from publishing or telecasting in a negative or sarcastic manner, contents of the CD which led to the scandal.However, the order clarified that the media houses can publish authenticated and true news on the subject after verification without making defamatory remarks against the six ministers..[Ramesh Jarkiholi sex CD case] Karnataka court gags media houses from publishing defamatory, sarcastic news about BJP lawmaker MP Renukacharya.The ministers, B Basavaraj, Dr K Sudhakar, BC Patil, Shivram Hebbar, HT Somashekar and KC Narayana Gowda had moved the Court after Water Resources Minister, Ramesh Jarkiholi, in the BS Yediyurappa-led Karnataka government, tendered his resignation after being accused of demanding sexual favours from an unidentified woman in exchange for a job.A CD in this regard was leaked, which ultimately resulted in Jarkholi's resignation.This would not be the last of the orders in relation to the Jarkiholi scandal..Court restrains media from publishing "false news" about Minister DV Sadananda Gowda.In the first week of July, a Bangalore court restrained media outlets from publishing or circulating "false, baseless and reckless news items" against Union Minister DV Sadananda Gowda.Additional City Civil Judge Mallikarjuna passed the order on a plea preferred by Gowda alleging that concocted news items are being published about him alleging he spoke ill about the Prime Minister and Karnataka Chief Minister."The defendants are hereby restrained from publishing, circulating false, baseless and reckless news items against the plaintiff in their respective medias by way of exparte ad-interim Temporary Injunction till next date of hearing," the order said..Gowda had contended that media outlets have started publishing false and frivolous news items and are making reckless allegations against the plaintiff without there being any justification or documentary evidence in support of their statements.Such news items are being circulated by people with vested interests so that he is removed from the post of minister during cabinet reshuffle..Court gags media houses from publishing defamatory, sarcastic news on MP Renukacharya.The recent addition to this list is BJP lawmaker, MP Renukacharya, who had moved the Court seeking to restrain media houses from publishing or telecasting any defamatory material against him in relation to the Ramesh Jarkiholi sex scandal..COVID-19 Bed Scam: Bangalore Court restrains 8 media houses and Facebook from publishing news against BJP MLA Satish Reddy.The ex-parte order was passed by Additional City Civil and Sessions Judge, Bengaluru City, Ningouda B Patil on July 28.“Defendants and anybody on their behalf are hereby restrained by an order of ad-interim ex-parte temporary injunction from publishing/ telecasting/ broadcasting/ disseminating/ distributing any statement or contents of an alleged CD or any other material referring the plaintiff negatively defaming him or creating a sarcastic views about him in any manner including showing the footage and pictures, till next date of hearing,” the Court ordered..Renukacharya, who is the BJP MLA from Honnali constituency, had contended in his plea that he hails from a respectable family and he is in public life as a peoples representative.He alleged that the defendant media organisations on July 21, 2021 published/ telecast defamatory statements regarding alleged CD/ explicit materials on their platforms and channels referring to him..Court restrains 8 media houses and Facebook from publishing news against BJP MLA Satish Reddy in COVID-19 Bed Scam.A Bangalore Court recently restrained eight media houses as well as Facebook from reporting or publishing any news against BJP MLA Satish Reddy in relation to the alleged COVID-19 bed scam in Bengaluru..Times Internet Limited, Bennett Coleman and Company, The Printers Mysore Private Limited (which publishes Deccan Herald and Prajavani), Spunklane Media Private Limited (The NewsMinute), VRL Media Limited, Manipal Media Network Limited, Samyukta Karnataka, Prathidhvani, Facebook India and Facebook Inc have been restrained from publishing any kind of news against Reddy..In its order, the Court of XL Additional City Civil & Sessions Judge Veena M Naikar stated,“The defendants are hereby restrained from publishing, transmitting, displaying, distributing or in any manner permitting circulation of the articles, reports, videos etc., through internet or television or any other media till their appearance by way of Ad interim Temporary Injunction.”.Reddy had sued media houses including The News Minute, Deccan Herald and Prathidhwani seeking Rs 20 crore as damages for defamation after he was linked him to the arrest of one Babu in the COVID-19 bed scam alleged by BJP MP Tejaswi Surya and others.