Delhi HC restrains telecast of documentary on Gurugram student death

NEW DELHI: Delhi High Court has restrained online streaming platform Netflix and channel News Asia (CNA) from broadcasting and telecasting a documentary, A Big Little Murder, based on the alleged murder of a 7-year-old student in a Gurugram school in 2017, unless all references to the school were deleted.
Justice Jayant Nath, earlier this week was hearing a plea by the school’s trust that alleged that the documentary, in its original form, violated a court order on the protection of privacy and the reputation of the parties involved in the case.
“The defendants (Netflix, CNA, the filmmaker and unknown parties) are restrained from streaming, broadcasting, telecasting, etc. the documentary titled ‘A Big Little Murder’ or any of its abridged versions,” the court said in its order. The judge, however, clarified that “the defendants may stream the said documentary after deleting all references to the plaintiff school in question and deleting the portion where the building of the school is depicted.”
The court’s ex- parte order came after it concluded that the school made out a prima facie case in its favour of suffering damage due to the broadcast of the documentary. The trust informed the court that the documentary was available for viewers on the website of CNA and on Netflix since earlier this month. It submitted that the criminal case related to the death of the child was pending before a sessions court in Gurugram, which had directed everyone to not use the real names of the parties in the case.
It was also stated in the said order that the real name of the victim, accused and school be not used, and imaginary names ought to be given to them. The name of the school, according to the order dated January 8, 2018, was to be mentioned as “Vidyalya”.
Yet, the school pointed out that its name and visuals had been used elaborately and frequently in the documentary without any permission and despite the explicit court order. The plea also informed the high court that in another case relating to the release of a book on the same trial, an high court bench had stayed its release as it contained references and used the name of the plaintiff's school.
The matter will be heard next on October 10.