HC quashes case against scribes

The Delhi High Court dismissed criminal charges against two investigative journalists

The Delhi High Court on Friday dismissed criminal charges against two investigative journalists,who had caught on camera 11 lawmakers accepting bribes for raising questions in Parliament in 2005. The court equated the sting operation in the infamous cash-for-query with defending the country from corruption at higher level.

Criticising the state for pursuing criminal cases against Aniruddha Bahal and Suhasini Raj,Justice S N Dhingra rejected the prosecutions plea that they should have complained to the police or the CBI instead of conducting the sting,which eventually involved them as accomplices in the case.

I need not emphasise that in cases of complaints against the persons in power,how the CBI and police act. The fate of whistleblowers is being seen by people of this country. They are either being harassed or killed or roped in criminal cases, Justice Dhingra noted in a strongly-worded verdict.

I have no doubt in my mind that if the information would have been given by the petitioners to the police or CBI,the respective MPs would have been given information by the police beforehand and they would have been cautioned about the entire operation, Justice Dhingra said.

Giving a thumbs-up to the investigative reporting,the court said the intention was more important than conduct in such cases because not many alternatives were available with citizens,who took it upon themselves as their duty to expose corruption against the big and mighty.

In order to expose corruption at higher level and to show to what extent the state managers are corrupt,acting as agent provocateurs does not amount to committing a crime, the judge observed. The intention of the person involved is to be seen and the intention in this case is clear from the fact that the petitioners after conducting this operation did not ask police to register a case against the MPs involved but gave information to people as to what was happening.

Justice Dhingra criticised the polices role after the sting was aired. The police did not seem interested in registration of an FIR even on coming to know of the corruption.

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Both Bahal and Raj,reporters of the website Cobra Post.com,had challenged a summon order issued by a special judge after taking cognisance of the chargesheet filed against them and the tainted MPs by the Delhi Police.