The Madras High court has made some Sweeping Directions about the media

• The Madras High Court has made some Sweeping Directions about the media.

Some of them are like the cure worse than the diseaseThere is, however, some reality that Criminals, Land Sharks, Smugglers, Communal Elements, Foreign Agents and even Murderess are hands in gloves with Mafia journalists This circular is being sent to all to elicit their opinions on it so that a compilation of it could be sent to the Union government for consideration for necessary changes in the Working Journalist Act, Press Council Act and the Trade Union Act. 

The Madras High Court has asked the Government of Tamil Nadu to set up a Press Council within three months so as to check the flood of fake journalists, circulation of false news and bogus associations of journalists. The Apex Court and various High Courts have expressed deep concern over the irresponsible behaviour of some people, who work on behalf of some forces in spreading the false news.  This order was passed by the High Court in ‘S. Sekaram vs The State of Tamil Nadu and others. Justices N. Kirubakaran and P. Velmurugan ordered that the proposed Press Council of Tamil Nadu should be headed by a retired judge of either the Supreme Court or the High Court.

 Experienced and reputed journalists, both working and retired, retired civil servants and Indian Police Service (IPS) officers must be its members. The council shall have sole authority to recognise press clubs and journalists’ associations or unions in the State of Tamil Nadu, and it shall not allow or recognise the formation or continuation of clubs or unions, or associations based on caste, community or State boundaries. The council shall conduct and approve elections to these clubs, unions and associations. The State government shall not allot any house or grant free bus passes directly to any applicant journalist, and those applications shall only be routed through the Press Council of Tamil Nadu, which after due diligence, can issue such benefits. The Journalists’ Associations should disclose their sources of income and obtain the council’s permission before conducting State conferences and meetings. The Council shall have the power to identify fake journalists and lodge complaints against them to the jurisdictional police. 

Members of the public can send their complaints regarding fake journalists to the welfare board, which will inquire and initiate criminal action against such fake journalists because they are a menace and a threat to civil society.

Some of the directions issued by the High Court fly in the face of Article 19 of the Constitution of India. Many of the medicines(directions) prescribed by the High Court are worse than the disease to cure (curb) the fake journalism. The Press Council of India. which has turned out to be a redundant body as it is good for nothing.  At least for its name’s sake, the Press Council of India must approach the Supreme Court of India to get finality on this issue as it has all the resources at its beck and call.

It has to be realized that media is now a multi-fanged genie that had got out of the bottle and has spread its vicious tentacle everywhere. It is difficult to put it back into the bottle, as everyone has tasted blood. The term ‘media’ now broadly comprises the traditional print media (dailies, weeklies, fortnightlies, and monthlies), television and online portals. But nowadays YouTubers, who run their own ‘channels and bloggers who are active on their own blog page or do tweets or Instagram activists have also started calling

• themselves media persons or ‘media influencers.

 Therefore, the primary challenge is to whom to bring under the bracket of “Media person”. It is important because many retired media people are either running a web portal or a YouTube channel or simply start an association. They also call themselves media persons as if there is no concept of retirement for them. So, there is this category of media persons who are on the payrolls of regular media houses and their position is statutorily defined. The Wage Board for media persons has categories like editors, correspondents and even proofreaders (who are extinct now) as being defined as ‘Working Journalists’. After the advent of the contract system, the wage board is not very relevant, though the Supreme Court has held otherwise. Television media blurred such definitions to a large extent, but still had broad categories of reporters and editors. Now there is a new association for News Readers, who say they are also journalists. It is the news portals that has undone all the media structure. One does not need any permission or regulatory approval of any authority to start one’s own portal. 

 The problem is many of these accreditation committee members themselves are stated to be either fake or retired or from news organisations and associations that exist only on paper. So even top journalists in this state must get their accreditation cards signed by this committee needs to be overhauled.

 The biggest threat to media freedom and the right to speech and expression available to journalists is the multitude of journalists’ associations that have sprung up in Chennai and districts. There is no regulation for these associations. It is said that 10 to 20 part-time journalists come together, float a

fancy letter-pad association, and then start issuing identity cards with bold PRESS declaration on payment of anything from Rs 10,000 to Rs 50,000. Parttime journalists use these cards to do katta panchayat or blackmail officials, businessmen and politicians at local levels.

  One could find them in large numbers whenever a press conference is called. While serious press conferences addressed by a professor or scientist will attract only a handful of journalists, those called by corporates, business houses, cinema stars, politicians and corrupt officials will be teeming with journalists. It is stated that the reason is obvious: It is either money or costly gifts, it is alleged. Genuine journalists at such functions will feel isolated, when they see these fake journalists fight for money, gifts and food – mostly at star hotels.

 Fake journalists have grown in such large numbers that genuine ones are now scared to identify them at press conferences, for the fear of being heckled or attacked. People know who are all fake, but they will have to keepq uiet because genuine journalists are too few. And they also want to avoid a nasty scene at such events.

 

The High Court further said that to curb this menace, which is fast spiralling out of control, stringent action is required. If it is not contained now, anything may happen at any time, as PRESS card-holding people are able to pass through security curbs easily almost always. One must keep in mind that the assassins of our former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi himself were able to go close to him because one of them (Sivarasan) acted out a ‘journalist’ role. Another such crime cannot be ruled out if this trend of fake journalists continues.

• Responsible Media is Necessary 

 A responsible media is necessary to sustain good democracy throughd issemination of correct news/information sans sensationalism and committed to national interests. Such vital performance on the part of the Indian media can be guaranteed only by ensuring that only good journalists run this news industry and it does not fall into the hands of evil people and anti-national forces, blackmailers and fraudsters.

There have been quite a number of instances of such fraudsters being booked by the police after being caught committing heinous crimes under the “PRESS” labelling. Politicians, land sharks, smugglers and even murderers have been seen to be hand in gloves with these “mafia journalists.

The court said that “journalists” have floated fake media associations and unions, enrolling all sorts of anti-social elements as members and issuing them with “PRESS” ID cards, which they in turn use as a money-making device. 

The DIPR is aware of this, but the officials turn a blind eye – to avoid any wrath in the hands of those fake journalists. This needs to be stopped to ensure that journalism, the fourth pillar of democracy remains clean and strong.

• In view of the above position, the High Court issued the following directions to clean up the media in the interest of the public .

(a) The State Government shall appoint “Press Council of Tamil Nadu” headed by a retired Judge of Hon'ble Supreme Court or High court, consisting of the team of experienced and reputed journalists, both working and retired, retired Civil servants and Police officials in the rank of IAS and IPS, within a period of three months.

(b) The council shall comprise representatives from the journalism industry as well as the government, and all members shall be serving journalists of standing and government servants. The members shall be on regular the payroll of media houses and organisations, evidenced by salary slips, payment of TDS and circulation or viewership details, as the case may be. Their terms will be co-terminus with their employment, and loss of job on any account such as resignation, dismissal or death and disability shall result in their immediate exit from the board.

 (c) The Council shall have the sole authority to recognise press clubs and journalists associations or unions in the state of Tamil Nadu and it shall not allow or recognise the formation or continuation of clubs or unions, or associations based on caste, community or state boundaries.

 (d)The council shall conduct and approve elections to these clubs, unions and associations, and management of the clubs, unions and associations shall be vested with the elected team of office bearers only after such approval by the board. 

(e) Press Council of Tamil Nadu should stipulate a period of election for each association and any of the associations which do not conduct the election on time shall automatically be brought under the administration of the Press Council of Tamil Nadu to be constituted.

 (f) The Council shall join hands with reputed national and international bodies and offer training or refresher programmes for journalists regularly in order to keep the members of the journalistic fraternity remain up to date with developments across the country and abroad. The board shall write to the government and obtain state assistance for the purpose. 

(g)The proposed Press Council of Tamil Nadu shall decide about the number of journalists association in each city or town.

 (h)The State Government 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 which after due diligence can issue such benefits.

 (i) The State Government shall prohibit the conduct of State conferences or meeting by journalists’ associations without permission/approval of the Press Council of Tamil Nadu to be constituted which shall get the details regarding the source of income and other relevant details before giving permission for such conference/meeting by the associations. 

(j) To curtail the menace of fake journalists, Council shall have the power to identify fake journalists and lodge complaints against them to jurisdictional police. Members of the public as also other affected people can send their complaints regarding fake journalists to the welfare board which shall inquire and initiate criminal action against such fake journalists because they are a menace and a threat to civil society.

 (k)The state shall make necessary amendments to the Accreditation Rules in tune with time within three months.

 (l) The State Government is directed not to issue press stickers, I.D cards and other benefits unless the organisation or media house discloses the number of employees, salary steps, TDS details, tax paid to the Government and proof that it sells a certain number of copies or has certain viewership.

 (m) The State government/Press Council of Tamil Nadu shall not issue press ID cards or stickers to the print media, magazines, dailies unless there is proof of circulation of at least 10,000 copies of their daily, weekly, fortnightly, monthly and ID cards shall be increased or decreased proportionately to their circulation.

 (n)After the constitution of the Press Council of Tamil Nadu, all journalists’ organizations shall be kept the suspended animation, so that the election could be conducted for those organizations under the supervision of Press Council of Tamil Nadu, within a period of six months thereafter. 

(o) The People aggrieved by the fake news or motivated and agenda-based news could lodge complaints with the Press Council of Tamil Nadu 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 news agencies or

media houses or journalists operating within the jurisdiction of the Council shall be duty-bound to receive and respond to the Council's summons and submit the details called for by the Council.

• Issued by
• Parmanand Pandey, 
• Sr Journalist and Secretary-General of IFWJ.