Submit list of criminal cases against ‘Savukku' Shankar: Madras High Court
The direction was issued while ordering notice to the three top officials and directing them to file their counter affidavit to a writ petition filed by Mr. Shankar alleging police interference in the functioning of Savukku Media (One Person Company) Private Limited.
During the course of hearing of the writ petition, the judge criticised journalists who conduct parallel media trial in criminal cases just for sensationalisation and go to the extent of dictating to the police and even the judges as to how a case should be handled, without waiting to see the outcome of those cases.
Asking the YouTuber's counsel to advise his client, the judge said, journalists could not misuse the fundamental right to speech and expression guaranteed under Article 19 of the Constitution and begin throwing mud on each and every institution in the country right at the preliminary stage of inquiry/investigation.
'We have to take the weapon (of Article 19) for a good cause, not for blackmailing. It is a stark reality that some of the journalists are blackmailing people... You cannot expect police and courts to act as per your dictum.... This is not the way... You are misguiding the people by doing all this,' the judge said.
In his affidavit, Mr. Shankar had accused the Greater Chennai Commissioner of Police A. Arun of subjecting him and his employees to various 'unlawful actions' since February this year just because he had been exposing police atrocities, misconduct and inaction through his YouTube channel.
The petitioner said that he had gone to Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh by road in February this year, along with his crew members, to cover the Kumbh Mela. Then, a team of 20 personnel from the Telangana police intercepted their car and took them to the Ramayampet police station for inquiry.
The entire crew comprising the driver and cameraman was detained for about two hours on February 8 and was allowed to go only on payment of ₹1,000 for not being in possession of Pollution Under Check (PUC) certificate. He alleged that the harassment was meted out to them at the behest of Greater Chennai police.
The petitioner said that he had immediately sent an e-mail to the Home Secretary complaining about the Chennai police tracking his movements and subjecting him to harassment. He also stated that in May, the motorcycles belonging to his cameraman and visual editor were seized by the police on petty charges.
Hence, he made a second complaint to the Home Secretary on May 23 since the latter was the chairperson of the State Police Complaints Authority constituted under the Tamil Nadu Police (Reforms) Act of 2013 and was the appropriate authority to look into complaints of police highhandedness.
Further, stating that he had made a similar complaint to the DGP too on June 21; the petitioner sought a direction to the Home Secretary and DGP to take appropriate action on his complaints and forbear the Greater Chennai Commissioner of Police from interfering with the functioning of Savukku Media.
However, Additional Advocate General J. Ravindran, representing the Home Secretary, contended that the complaints lodged by the writ petitioner would not strictly fall under the purview of the 2013 Act. He also stated that he would make all his submissions in writing by way of a counter affidavit within two weeks.
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