2005-2014

NEW DELHI, AUGUST 18: Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee today ruled that the article against him in the Pioneer newspaper constituted ‘‘ a gross breach of privilege of the Speaker and also of the House’’ but decided against accepting a privilege motion against the publication because it was ‘‘beneath the dignity’’ of the House. In a lengthy ruling on the privilege notices given by Ramji Lal...

New Delhi, August 18: Speaker of the Lower House of the Indian Parliament, Somnath Chatterjee, on Thursday rejected moving a privilege notice against the "Pioneer" newspaper for publishing a news item levelling charges against him. Chatterjee said that handing out a privilege notice would be beneath the dignity of Parliament, and added that taking further note of the "motivated imputations in the...

NEW DELHI: Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee on Thursday rejected a privilege motion against the writer and editor of a newspaper that had published an article criticising him, but chose to express his strong condemnation and stressed the need for ‘reasonable restrictions' on of the freedom of the press. "In view of the condemnation on the floor of the House and as it will be beneath the...

New Delhi: The Supreme Court Thursday sought reactions from the government, The Times of India and Hindustan Times, on a petition questioning the publication of titillating materials in the two newspapers. A three-member bench comprising Chief Justice R.C. Lahoti and judges G.P. Mathur and P.K. Balasubramanyan issued notices to the government and the newspapers after the petitioner drew the court...

New Delhi: The Supreme Court has issued notices to news agencies and newspapers that seek to classify them according to their content. The notice was also sent to the Central government. It was issued on a public interest litigation that wanted a regulatory body for classification aimed at identifying publications that contain adult material, which might not be suitable for children. One article...

Judith Miller of the New York Times first came to my attention through her book - God has ninety nine names. I did not like it. In it she displayed her pro-Israeli, pro-Phalangist (a fascist Lebanese organization) bias against the uprooted Palestinians. She disregarded facts, and preferred quoting endless talks to justify the marauding activities of the Israeli apartheid government and the U.S...

LET me begin in classic contemporary style, with a disclaimer. This by no means purports to be a serious analysis of the public relations (PR) industry. Instead, it seeks to take a snapshot view of an industry that is coming of age. Actually, PR and its implications have been on top of my mind ever since the great deluge that submerged many parts of Mumbai. If the administration goofed up in...

New Delhi, Aug. 18: The top court on Thursday issued notices to the Centre, the Press Council of India, the two English dailies and the two news agencies on a public interest petition (PIL) seeking laying down of rules and regulations to ensure that minors are not exposed to obscene material, which could be classified as Adult (A) and Universal (U) as is done for films. Petitioner Ajay Goswami...

Thursday, August 18, 2005 (Hyderabad): Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Rajasekhara Reddy wants to make media encounters with Naxals a thing of the past. Irked by the fourth estate providing a platform to those wanted by the police, Reddy has given a stern warning to journalists. The Chief Minister says that cases could be slapped on scribes for publishing or broadcasting such interviews. "Suppose a...

Lok Sabha Speaker Somnath Chatterjee ruled on Thursday that English daily The Pioneer had committed breach of privilege by publishing a "grossly libellous" article earlier this month, but did not take any action, saying it would be "beneath the dignity" of the House to take further note of "motivated imputations". "I believe that the disapprovation by large sections of this Hon'ble House, of the...