An interim injunction filed against 67 media houses by the Bengaluru Civil Court to restrain the airing of any kind-of dubious material that could jeopardize the position of six of the state ministers in the B.S. Yediyurappa Cabinet until the next hearing.
The background of the case is as follows:
- On 5th March, the State Ministers approached the court to seek an injunction against the media houses from showcasing defamatory content concerning them.
- The partnership of the Congress and JDS tumbled once the ministers moved to BJP in 2019. Also, these ministers took up a position as Cabinet Ministers once they attained the elections conducted in December 2019.
- The Ministers asserted that the media houses in Karnataka recently published doubtful news concerning the State Minister, Shri Ramesh Jarakiholi. Also, the same covered under the headline, Sex scandal of the State Minister. The allegation drew against the Minister stated that he guaranteed a job to a woman in return for some favors.
The Court opined that considering the crucial offices held by these Ministers, if such unverified news or content is public, their image is tarnished and could be an embarrassment to their families. Lastly, Judge Kumar viewed that citizens hold the right to know the leaders governing their state. Likewise, the media houses have the freedom to express free speech regarding the state representatives. But it is salient to respect the boundary between free speech and defamatory content that could hammer the representatives.
