Excelsior Correspondent
Srinagar, Feb 27 : High Court quashed the complaint on allegations of fabricated report in a newspaper as also the proceedings thereon against a scribe citing the report was in general concerning hospital maladministration.
The complaint was filed by an ambulance driver against the reporter of Early Times highlighting misuse of hospital ambulances by the Government officials. The petitioner-Rajesh Tandon, a reporter for the newspaper challenged the complaint filed by the ambulance driver on the ground that there was no imputation in the news item regarding the respondent-driver as the news item was not attributed to any particular person.
He also submitted that there are no specific allegations whatsoever against him that he was responsible for selection of the news item and no content of the news item says that the respondent-driver was misusing the Government vehicle for personal use. The news item was published at the instance of the local people of Surankote, who were being denied the services of the ambulance meant for public use.
Justice Rajnesh Oswal quashed a criminal proceeding against the reporter by recording that the news item did not name the respondent-driver, nor was he explicitly quoted as being responsible for the said misuse.
The court said that it was a general report concerning hospital maladministration and the complainant-driver had assumed that the alleged misuse was attributed to him.
“…merely because the respondent was suspended, whether rightly or wrongly, would not establish any cause for the respondent to prosecute the petitioner, particularly when there was nothing on record to demonstrate that the news item was published at the instance of the petitioner”, the court observed.
The court said that the Magistrate had issued the process against the petitioner-reporter for the commission of the offence of defamation in a mechanical manner. “The learned trial court had not recorded the statements of the complainant on oath, whereas, as per the mandate of Section 200 of Cr.PC, such statements are required to be recorded on oath”, reads the order.
Justice Oswal further added that this Court could have remanded the matter back to the trial court because of infraction of Section 200 Cr.P.C on the part of the Magistrate while recording statement of the complainant but in view of the above discussion, it is of the considered view that no offence is made out against the petitioner, as such, the court quashed the proceedings in the complaint pending before the trial court.
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