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Swapnil Tripathi v. Supreme Court of India

Writ Petition (Civil) · 2018 INSC 886Decided 26 Sept 2018
Writ Petition (Civil) No. 1232 of 2017
Chief Justice Dipak Misra · Justice A.M. Khanwilkar · Dr. Justice D.Y. Chandrachud

Background

Law student Swapnil Tripathi and others, including senior advocate Indira Jaising, petitioned the Supreme Court seeking a declaration that proceedings of constitutional importance affecting the public at large should be live-streamed for public viewing. They argued this followed from citizens' fundamental rights to access justice, freedom of speech, and the long-recognised principle of open courts.

Decision Breakdown

The Court held that live-streaming of court proceedings in cases of constitutional/national importance is part of the right to access justice, flowing from the principle of open courts and Article 21. It accepted the petitioners' case and laid down a detailed regulatory framework for live-streaming, including: a graduated roll-out starting with Constitution Bench matters; cameras to focus only on judges and arguing counsel (not the public gallery); specified categories of proceedings (e.g., matrimonial, POCSO, gender-sensitive matters) to be exempted; the presiding judge's power to pause or stop streaming; retention of copyright over the broadcast by the Court; and archiving of recordings. It directed that the Supreme Court Rules, 2013 be suitably amended to give effect to this framework.

Lesson Learnt

The right to access justice includes a citizen's right to watch important court proceedings live, not merely to read the eventual written judgment: this ruling laid the legal foundation that eventually led to actual live-streaming of Supreme Court proceedings in subsequent years.

Official source (sci.gov.in)View Judgment (PDF)

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