Supreme Court: Being A Journalist Does Not Mean You Have The License To Take Law Into Your Own Hands

The Supreme Court in the case Sadaqat Pathan V. State of Madhya Pradesh and connected matters observed and has orally remarked that a journalist or a reporter does not have license to take the law into their own hands.
The court in the case observed and has made the said recommendations while hearing the plea moved by a journalist who was denied anticipatory bail by the Madhya Pradesh High Court.
In the present case, the journalist was trying to expose a racket involving the illegal sale and purchase of a new born child.
The court registered an FIR against him wherein it is alleged that the journalist seek illegal gratification to suppress the news.
It has also been claimed by the journalist before the court that he being an accredited correspondent and that he published a news item in the Dainik Bhaskar on July 26, 2021 wherein it exposed the racket which involves illegal sale of a new born child and as a counter blast one of the accused in the case registered a case against him and others.
The Apex Court in the case observed and has granted interim protection against the arrest to the petitioner and other journalists.
The Division bench comprising of Justice A S Bopanna and Justice M M Sundresh in the case observed and has stated that the petitioner was no longer entitled to the interim protection.
It has also been observed by the said court that the petitioner in the case was involved in other cases as well.
Further, the petitioner approached the Apex Court against the order of the Madhya Pradesh High Court denying anticipatory bail.
On the other hand, it has been opposed by the objector that plea moved by the journalist and other applicants before the High Court stating that they were not involved in discharge of their pious obligation as journalists but were in fact running a racket of black mailing people to extract undue advantage for themselves.