Madras HC directs TN Govt to create Press Council of Tamil Nadu within 3 months. It should be headed by a retired SC/HC judge & include a team of experienced & reputed journalists, both working & retired, retired civil servants & police officials in the rank of IPS.
Madras HC directs TN Govt to create Press Council of Tamil Nadu within 3 months. It should be
headed by a retired SC/HC judge & include a team of experienced & reputed journalists, both working
& retired, retired civil servants & police officials in the rank of IPS.
The Council shall have sole authority to recognise press clubs & journalists associations or unions in the state of Tamil Nadu and it shall
not allow or recognise formation or continuation of clubs or unions or
associations based on caste, community or state boundaries.
The Council shall conduct & approve elections to these clubs, unions
& associations & management of the clubs, unions and associations
shall be vested with the elected team of office bearers only after such
approval.
Press Council of Tamil Nadu should stipulate a period of election for
each association and any of the association which do not conduct the
election on time, shall automatically brought under the administration of
Press Council of Tamil Nadu to be constituted.
The proposed Press Council of Tamil Nadu shall decide about number of journalists association in each city or town.
The Govt shall not allot any house or grant free bus passes
directly to any applicant journalists and shall only be routed through
Press Council of Tamil Nadu.
The State Government shall prohibit conduct of State conferences or
meeting by journalists associations without permission/approval of the
Press Council of TN which shall get the details
regarding the source of income and other relevant details before giving
permission.
To curtail the menace of fake journalists, Council shall have power to
identify fake journalists and lodge complaints against them to
jurisdictional police. Members of public as also other affected people can
send their complaints regarding fake journalists to the council.
The Govt is directed not to issue press stickers, I.D cards and other benefits, unless the organisation or media house disclose the
number of employees, salary steps, TDS details, tax paid to the
Govt & proof that it sells certain number of copies or has certain
viewership.
After constitution of Press Council of Tamil Nadu, all journalists
organizations shall be kept in the suspended animation so that the
election could be conducted for those organizsations under the supervision
of Press Council of Tamil Nadu, within 6 months thereafter.
The People aggrieved by the fake news or motivated and agenda-based
news could lodge complaints with the Press Council of TN which shall summon the news agency or media house or the reported
concerned and probe the veracity of the complaints.
Depending upon the
finding, the Council shall have powers to order the source of the
offending news item to carry a rejoinder or apology or publish the
response of the de facto complainant prominently.
The Government of Tamil Nadu shall comply with the above directions
and file a compliance report within a period of four weeks, failing which
the Director, Information and Public Relations Department shall appear
before this Court: Judges N.Kirubakaran and P.Velmurugan
