Sunlight is best disinfectant, says SC, allows live streaming

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Wednesday allowed the live streaming of its proceedings, saying the move will bring “transparency and accountability” to the judicial process and was manifestly in the “public interest”.

It said as a pilot project, only a specified category of cases which are of constitutional or national importance and are being argued before a constitution bench, should be live streamed.

The top court said that sensitive cases such as those dealing with matrimonial disputes or sexual assault should not be live streamed.

A bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud, in two different but concurring judgements, said “we hold that the cause brought before this court by the protagonists in larger public interest, deserves acceptance so as to uphold the constitutional rights of public and the litigants in particular”.

“Above all, sunlight is the best disinfectant,” said Justice Chandrachud, in a separate concurring verdict.

The bench said that for live-streaming, the permission of the concerned court will have to be sought in advance. It added that “the concerned court would retain its power to revoke the permission at any stage of the proceedings suo motu (on its own) or on an application filed by any party to the proceeding, if the situation so warrants”.