Did you know we can get live coverage on case proceedings in the Supreme Court?

Sridhruti Chitrapu | 15th September 2019

In the recent case of Swapnil Tripathi and Ors. v. Supreme Court of India and Ors. the Supreme Court held that live streaming is to be allowed in case of constitutional importance. In principle, the proceedings of the courts are open to the general public and anyone who wishes to witness it. But in practicality, it is not possible for people to attend the cases in the court out of sheer interest due to constraints like lack of time and sufficient space in the court halls.

So petitions have been filed asking the Supreme Court to live stream cases of constitutional and national importance which have a great impact on the public at large. It was further stated in the petition that the court is to direct a few guidelines that are to be followed to determine which of the cases fall into the exceptional category to qualify for live streaming.

The three-judge bench went on to stress on the potency of open court trials for upholding the legitimacy of the judicial system. It was believed that this will ensure greater accountability on part of the judiciary and it will increase the public’s confidence in the judicial system. Justice D. Y. Chrandachud opined that this will put into effect the principle of open court and provide first-hand information to the public. Open trials will act as guardians against improbity. Open judiciary is a common law principle formulated by Lord Chief Justice Hewart. This principle represents democratic accountability and the manifestation of the principle of freedom of expression by supporting the primary concept of the Rule of law. The basic idea behind this principle is to instil greater public confidence in the judiciary and also to act as a check upon Judiciary. This acceptance towards the judicial system automatically increases the willingness of the people to access the courts and abide by the judicial orders.

Held –

The apex court decided that cases of constitutional and national importance can be live-streamed. It also directed the central government to frame proper rules in this regard to carry this out in different phases as directed by it.