Dinesh Kamath's Editorial 'Save freedom of Press' that was published in Newsband

Save freedom of Press

The Karnataka Assembly has imposed a one-year prison sentence and ₹10,000 fine on the editors of two tabloids. The Constitution protects freedom of speech and expression in the House. There is little merit in subjecting anyone, leave alone a journalist, to penal action for allegedly breaching a legislator’s privilege. The articles concerned were published in Hi Bangalore and Yelah'nka Voice. Ravi Belagere and Anil Raj are the editors of the two tabloids.

The articles had not impeded the independent functioning of the three legislators who had complained against them. They could have pursued an appropriate judicial remedy. The time has come for the legislature to codify privileges and for the higher judiciary to lay down the limits of penal action for breach of privilege.

This news compel us to re-think about the "freedom of speech and expression". Imprisonment of two editors in Karnataka without any serious reason are telling us clearly that there have not been any restriction on legislatures. Do the politicians think that they can make any big mistake or be corrupt but a common man has no right to express?

The Karnataka government ought to pass the rescinding resolution of the punishment to save and cherish press freedom. Press and media are the exhibitors of the polity and society in the right perspective and keep up the democratic values. Hence an affair which draws the odium of the society must be rescinded to save press freedom.

Resolution imposing prison sentence on the editors by Karnataka Assembly sends a perilous signal. Liberty is precious to the citizens and that should remain unfettered. Any measure to guillotine individual freedom of expression makes democracy a mockery. When our Constitution provides for a well-structured, multi-tier judiciary, what is the necessity for a parallel power zone in the legislative?

This resolution could lead to another draconian law and scuttling fundamental right of expression. Matter should be taken to court for deciding validity of such resolutions which restrict dissent.

Two issues can be highlighted in this regard. The first is that 'interest groups' always close ranks and protect, at all costs, their self interests. This applies as much to legislators as journalists. In this case, the legislators of INC & BJP who do not see eye-to-eye on any issue of national interest at all, decided to jointly punish the journalists to preserve their personal interests. This is crass opportunism at its worst. For their part, the journalists also behave in a similar fashion through their various organizations claiming that they are 'above all laws of this land'.

It is increasingly becoming clear that both the legislature and judiciary are openly (brazenly?) usurping into the Constitutional Rights of the People (and systems managed by people) through various means. Additionally, both these wings of Democracy seem to expose tendencies of anger and vendetta, outside of their Constitutional Powers/ Responsibilities/Duties, in dealing with various matters of Governance, legalities and outdoing what could be considered breach of Constitutional Proprieties. The current imbroglio wherein the Karnataka Legislature's attempt to muzzle Freedom of Press through invoking so-called "Breach of Privilege" Law to pass judgment on Karntaka journalist and Ordering his Imprisonment for a year is preposterous and obnoxious by any stretch of democratic thinking. A studied observation of the various happenings would make a serious/studious observer to conclude that Indian democracy could be a den for hooliganism and anarchy - not democracy - sooner than later.