Be sensitive, don't publicize Pune woman's death: Bombay-HC tells media
The Bombay High Court has asked the media not to give unnecessary publicity to an incident where a woman allegedly died by suicide in Pune and her suspected illicit relations with a man, according to an order made available on Friday. A division bench of Justices SS Shinde and Manish Pitale gave the directive on Thursday.
The petition was filed by the woman's father
The bench was hearing a petition filed by the woman's father against news articles on his daughter, her death, and her alleged relationship. Senior counsel Shirish Gupte, appearing for the woman's father, told the court the petitioner had learned that his daughter fell from the balcony of her flat in Pune on February 8 and was declared dead at the hospital.
Audio clips were circulated by political parties and media: Gupte
Soon after the incident, various news reports in print and electronic media emerged alleging the 23-year-old woman was in an illicit relationship with a man, Gupte said, dubbing the reports as defamatory and derogatory. "Around 12 audio clips of alleged conversations of the petitioner's daughter with some unknown person were circulated by political parties and the media," Gupte argued.
Cited judgment on media trial of Sushant Singh Rajput case
Gupte referred to a High Court judgment delivered on a petition against media trial in the death case of actor Sushant Singh Rajput that laid down guidelines to be followed by the media while reporting on sensitive cases. The bench noted that it found prima facie substance in the petitioner's argument and directed the media to scrupulously follow the guidelines issued by the HC.
