MEDIA TRIAL: THE NEWSROOM COURT

INTRODUCTION

Whoever controls the media controls the mind. India being a democratic country has four important pillars namely legislature, judiciary, executive and media. Media is contemplated as one of the most important pillars of the democracy. It plays a crucial role in delivering messages and shaping the opinion of the society and is proficient in changing the perspective and outlook of people.

Media is regarded as the “Fourth Pillar” of our Indian democracy. It keeps people aware of all the important happening around the world and informs them in fraction of seconds. It has made propagation of information so easy. It is the prime duty of the media to circulate unprejudiced and correct news instead coming to a conclusion without the court intervention as it plays a vital role in changing the whole point of the view of the people of the society.

But now a day’s media is misusing its power and making the accuse the talk of the town even without the judiciary deciding it. As the law says the person is innocent until proven guilty then how can the media decide the person’s destiny and whether he is an accuse or not.

Media  trial  is a process to delineate the impact of television and newspaper coverage on a person's reputation by fabricating a widespread consciousness of guilt or innocence before, or after, a verdict in a court of law. In other words, it is a process where the media take the whole case in its own hand and proclaims the person either as innocent or guilty even before or after the court has declared.

Media is the only medium through which public gets aware of each and every case and big event happening in and around the world. Sometimes media even misleads the public by conveying the wrong information which creates havoc among the people of the society.

MEDIA TRIAL: BOON OR A BANE 

 Media which once was a boon to our society now has turned to be a bane for everyone. The newsroom is becoming the new courtroom. Though media acts as a surveillance and has made a platform where the people can know about the happenings in the world but at the same time it has made the whole world prejudiced against a single individual.

Media trials have given rise to unjustified depiction of the accused and have helped the society in shaping and destroying their career just on the fact that they were accused without even declaring them as the culprit. Media has started playing the role of public courts and started interfering in the proceedings of the court.

When a staggering case or high profile case comes to the court for the trial, media amplifies and adds elation and eagerness among general public and then the public wishes to know and keep themselves refurbished and re-equipped with every little details and orders regarding the proceedings of the case or any other person’s name being revealed other than the accused.

The newspapers, news channel, websites then come into picture and publish wrong information which includes their own facts and judgements of the case which are far different from the actual case. These media trials are becoming a threat to our judicial system.

MEDIA TRIAL CASES

1. Sushil Sharma vs. The State

In the case of Sushil Sharma vs. The State, there was a little proof that the accused was the murderer of is partner. However, the court was sceptical and the case was still pending whether is he is guilty or not, the media had already started playing its role and depicting the accused as the murderer and was proficient enough to change the minds on people even before the final decision of the case.

The high court held that whether the person is guilty of the offence or not will entirely depend on the facts of the case and not because the media made him guilty for the offence and proclaimed him as an accused. The judgements will be finalised based on the evidence available and not on what media draws a picture of that person.

2. Aarushi Talwar Murder case

The Aarushi Talwar Murder case took place in 2008. A girl and a live-in domestic male worker employed by her parents named Arushi Talwar aged thirteen years and Hemraj Banjade aged forty five years were found dead on 15^th may at Aarushi’s residence in Noida. This case triggered the general public and evoked their interest and received media coverage on large scale. The media without any information started putting faulty comments and allegations against Arushi and other suspects. The wrongful act of the media deformed the reputation of the deceased and also started intervening the police investigation.

3. Jessica Lal Murder case

Jessica, a model working as a celebrity in a crowded party was short dead at 2 am on 30^th April in 1999. According to many witnesses it was found Manu Sharma was the prime murderer. But after some time Manu Sharma and other culprits were acquitted on 21^st February 2006.

There was a strong evidence to convict the accuse. Due to public pressure and pressure of media and from the prosecution high court conducted proceedings daily over 25 days. The final judgment of the court came and Manu Sharma was found guilty of murder and was sentenced to life imprisonment in 2006 and later was released on ground of good behaviour.

In this case media was of great help for getting justice for Jessica Lal.

4. Sushant Singh Rajput Death case

Sushant Singh Rajput, a Bollywood actor was found dead in his Bandra apartment on 30^th June. Sushant’s father filed a case against a co-actor Rhea Chakraborty, for the abetment of his son’s suicide. Also her sister claimed that Rhea Chakraborty used black magic on Sushant. This case started becoming an article of virtu because media was playing an active role in spreading wrong information without knowing the real facts of the case. 

The Bombay high court stated media trial in this case was very insolent and scornful. Interference of media in the administration of justice can sometimes lead to obtruding investigation.

Media being the epitome of the democracy made the public believe the co-actor Rhea Chakraborty as the murderer of this act. So this made her file a plea in the supreme court of India against unjust and prejudiced media trial and how the media protruded the death of the act as a murder and projected Rhea as the murderer till the final judgement was made as death being a suicide 

CONCLUSION

Media, the most crucial aspect of our Indian democracy is the epitome of our system. It is the cornerstone of our society, so it should not embezzle its power and misconceive the general public. 

Media should comprehend that its main role is to only to raise issues which our society is facing and should not portray and throw wrong and faulty statements without the final judgements. In today’s world the society is entirely dependent on the media because of which it has started moulding the opinions and thoughts of the people in the society and changing the whole perception and point of view of an individual but at the same time it does a formidable job in bringing the accused to hook.