34th 2012-2013 Annual Report April 1, 2012 - March 31, 2013 Press Council of India, New Delhi PRESS COUNCIL OF INDIA Annual Report (April 1, 2012- March 31, 2013) New Delhi Printed at : Chandu Press, D-97, Shakarpur, Delhi-110092 Press Council of India Soochna Bhawan, 8, CGO Complex, Lodhi Road, New Delhi- 110 003 Chairman: Mr. Justice Markandey Katju Editors of Indian Languages Newspapers (Clause (a) of Sub-Section (3) of Section 5) NAME ORGANISATION NOMINATED BY NEWSPAPERS Shri K. S. Sachidananda Editor’s Guild of India, Malayala Murthy All India Newspaper Editors’ Conference and Manorama, Hindi Samachar Patra Sammelan Malayalam Daily, Kottayam, Kerala Shri Shravan Kumar Editor’s Guild of India, Nai Duniya, Indore Garg All India Newspaper Editors’ Conference and Hindi Samachar Patra Sammelan Shri Jagjit Singh Dardi Editor’s Guild of India, Charhdikala, All India Newspaper Editors’ Conference and Punjabi Daily, Hindi Samachar Patra Sammelan Patiala, Punjab Shri Sheetla Singh Editor’s Guild of India, Janmorcha, Hindi All India Newspaper Editors’ Conference and Daily, Faizabad, Hindi Samachar Patra Sammelan Uttar Pradesh Shri Anil Jugalkishor Editor’s Guild of India, Daily Amravati Agrawal All India Newspaper Editors’ Conference and Mandal, Amravati, Hindi Samachar Patra Sammelan Maharashtra Shri Bishambhar Newar All India Newspaper Editors’ Chhapte-Chhapte, Conference and Hindi Samachar Hindi Daily, Patra Sammelan West Bengal Working Journalists other than Editors (Clause (a) of Sub-Section (3) of Section 5) Shri Rajeev Ranjan Nag National Union of Journalists, Press India News Weekly, Association, Working News Cameramen’s New Delhi Association and Indian Journalists Union Shri Uppala Lakshman National Union of Journalists, Press Samayam, Association and Working News Cameramen’s Telugu Daily, Association Hyderabad Shri Arvind S. Tengse National Union of Journalists, Press Photo Journalist, Association and Working News Cameramen’s Freelancer Association Shri Kosuri Amarnath National Union of Journalists , Press Freelance Journalist, Association, Working News Cameramen’s Hyderabad Association iii NAME ORGANISATION NOMINATED BY NEWSPAPERS Shri Kalyan Barooah National Union of Journalists, Press Association, The Sentinel/ Working News Cameramen’s Association and The Assam Tribune Indian Journalists Union Shri Sondeep Shankar National Union of Journalists, Press Association, Photo Journalist, Working News Cameramen’s Association and Freelancer Indian Journalists Union Shri Arun Kumar National Union of Journalists, Navbharat Times/The Press Association and Working Times of India, Patna News Cameramen’s Association Owners and Managers of Big, Medium and Small Newspapers* (Clause (b) of Sub-Section (3) of Section 5) Shri Vijay Kumar Indian Newspaper Society Punjab Kesari, Hindi Chopra Daily, Jalandhar, Punjab Shri Sanjay Gupta Indian Newspaper Society Dainik Jagran, Hindi Daily, New Delhi Shri Gurinder Singh Indian Newspaper Society, All India Indian Observer, Small and Medium Newspapers English Daily, New Federation and Association of Small Delhi and Medium Newspapers of India Shri V.K. Chopra Indian Newspaper Society, All India Filmi Duniya, Small and Medium Newspapers Hindi Monthly, Delhi Federation and Association of Small and Medium Newspapers of India Dr. R.I. Lakshmipathy Indian Newspaper Society, All India Health, Small and Medium Newspapers English Monthly, Federation and Association of Small Tamil Nadu and Medium Newspapers of India *Vacant --------- ---------- Managers of News Agencies (Clause (c) of Sub-Section (3) of Section 5) Shri Neeraj Bajpai United Neaws of India Joint Editor, United News of India, New Delhi Nominees of University Grants Commission, Bar Council of India and Sahitya Academy (Clause (d) of Sub-Section(3) of Section 5) Shri Rajeev Sabade University Grants Commission **Shri Ramchander Rao N. Bar Council of India Shri A. Krishna Murthy Sahitya Academy Members of Parliament Nominated by Speaker, Lok Sabha and Chairman, Rajya Sabha (Clause (e) of Sub-Section (3) of Section 5) Vacant (Lok Sabha) Shri Harin Pathak (Lok Sabha) Shri Sanjay Dina Patil (Lok Sabha) Shri Rajeev Shukla (Rajya Sabha) Shri Prakash Javadekar (Rajya Sabha) Secretary : Smt. Vibha Bhargava *Notification of remaining one member under Clause 5(3)(b)of Press Council Act, 1978 awaited **Nominated vide Gazette Notification dated 11.10.2012 Contents Foreword Chapter I General Review 1 Chapter II Adjudications in Complaints Regarding Threats to 66 Press Freedom Chapter III Adjudications in Complaints Filed Against the Press 74 Chapter IV Report on the Issue of Private Treaties by the Media 86 Companies – Adopted by the Press Council of India on 27.8.2012 Chapter V Report on the Murder of Shri Chandrika Rai and 89 Three Members of His Family on 17.2.2012 in Umaria (MP) - Adopted by the Press Council of India on 27.8.2012 Chapter VI Report of the Election Coverage Monitoring 99 Committee on Paid News During Gujarat Election – 2012- Adopted by the Press Council of India on 18.2.2013 Chapter VII Finances of the Council 2012-2013 108 Annexures A Statement of Cases April 1, 2012- March 31, 2013 134 B Gazette Notification dated October 11, 2012 135 C Gazette Notification dated November 1, 2012 136 D Judgement dated 14.9.2012 of the Supreme Court 155 of India in the Matter of Troop Movement E Guidelines for Protection of Child Rights 158 v F Graph of Adjudications 2012-2013 159 G Subject Index of Adjudications in Complaints 160 Regarding Threats to Press Freedom (2012-2013) H Subject Index of Adjudications in Complaints 165 Filed Against the Press (2012-2013) I Index of Principles Recorded in Adjudications 184 in Complaints Regarding Threats to Press Freedom J Index of Principles Recorded in Adjudications 185 in Complaints Filed Against the Press K Subject Index of Orders Passed by the Press 186 and Registration Appellate Board (2012-2013) vi Foreword It gives me immense pleasure to place this report in the hands of the readers. I feel that while freedom of press is a right to be cherished at all costs, the most vociferous advocates of this right also unequivocally advocate the case of balancing the right with the duty to report facts, clear and distinct from opinions, and free from all biases and pre-conceived notions. For the Council the most potent instrument of furthering this cause is the medium of its adjudications on the complaints brought before it. I am happy to state that I have, in keeping with the mandate of the Press Council, attempted to inculcate the ethos of ethics (rather than punishment) by attempting settlement between the parties or allowing the respondents to make amends for their lapses. This, I feel, is how the Council should function, for the courts already exist to punish the guilty. The Press Council, as a body of the press and for the press, has primarily to ensure that the media refrains from commercial rivalry to regain its glory of pre-independence days as an estate with a mission to bring about a bright future for the country. Time and again a need has been felt and voiced by many for vesting the Council with sufficient power to enforce its directions. Ever since I have taken over charge I have been urging the inclusion of the electronic media under the Council’s regulatory umbrella. To this effect the Press Council of India has passed a resolution asking the union government to amend the Press Council Act, 1978 by bringing the electronic media within the purview of the Act, renaming it as The Media Council and giving it more powers. All the proposals for amendment have been pending with the government for a long time now and the Council can only hope for an early action in the matter. I am a votary of the freedom of the press and as such have constituted several Committees to deal with various subjects related to the Press and the journalists ranging from safety of journalists to Election Coverage to name a few. While some of the Committees viz. Gujarat Election Coverage and SEBI/Umaria Report submitted their Reports and the Council took necessary action on them, the other Committees are in the process of investigation of the subjects referred to them. On the debate in the Supreme Court on framing guidelines for the media, I have said that the Press Council has already drafted guidelines and apprised the apex court that if new guidelines are to be drafted they should be on the lines of existing ones. vii Further for the first time, the Press Council of India moved the Supreme Court to protect press freedom by challenging an Allahabad High Court order restraining the print and electronic media from reporting on the controversy related to alleged involvement of Army units towards Delhi on January 16, 2012. The Supreme Court of India quashed the Allahabad High Court order, allowed the plea of the Press Council of India and observed that the High Court erred in passing an order as ban on Media was not appropriate and the prayer was only to hold an inquiry into the controversial incident. To encourage media to pursue its duties following the dictum of freedom with responsibilities the Press Council of India has also begun a new initiative of instituting awards in journalism in different categories to honour journalists from print media every year on the National Press Day – November 16. For quite sometime an issue has arisen about the need for qualification for entry into the profession of journalism. Since the media is a fully developed field and has an important influence on the lives of the people, the time has now come when some qualification should be prescribed by law. Accordingly, I have constituted a Sub-Committee to consider all aspects of the matter with stakeholders and to submit a report suggesting the qualifications a person should have before he can be allowed to enter the profession of journalism.