No news without ascertaining with Govt: Centre seeks in SC

The Centre sought a direction from the Supreme Court on Tuesday that no media outlet print, publish or telecast anything on coronavirus without first ascertaining facts from the mechanism provided by the government.

It said that in an unprecedented situation of this nature,any deliberate or unintended fake or inaccurate reporting either in electronic,print, social media or web portals has a serious and inevitable potential ofcausing panic in large sections of the society.

   

“Considering the very nature of the infectious disease whichthe world is struggling to deal with, any panic reaction by any section of thesociety based upon such reporting would not only be harmful for such situationbut would harm the entire nation,” it said.

“It is, therefore, in the largest interest of justice thatwhen this court has taken cognizance, this court is pleased to issue adirection that no electronic/print media/ web portal or social media shallprint/ publish or telecast anything without first ascertaining the true factualposition from the separate mechanism provided by the Central government,” saidthe Centre’s affidavit filed in the top court.

The government said that though an act of creating panic isa criminal offence under the Disaster Management Act, 2005, appropriatedirection from the top court would “protect the country from any potential andinevitable consequence resulting from a false alarm having the potential ofcreating panic in a section of the society”.

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