Kochi: The Kerala High Court has held that a journalist cannot be prosecuted for criminal defamation merely because a news report concerning an arrest or registration of a criminal case causes embarrassment or reputational harm to the person concerned.
Justice C.S. Dias observed that there is an important distinction between reporting an official proceeding and making an independent defamatory allegation. A substantially accurate report of an official action, such as registration of a crime or arrest by a competent authority, would not by itself attract criminal liability unless it contains an additional false, malicious or culpable defamatory imputation.
The Court made the observations while considering a petition filed by the editors and a reporter of a reputed daily seeking to quash a criminal defamation complaint.
The complainant alleged that a report published with his name and photograph falsely stated that he had been caught with three litres of Indian Made Foreign Liquor intended for illegal sale, whereas official records showed seizure of 2.5 litres. He also contended that he was subsequently acquitted and that the publication had damaged his reputation.
The journalists maintained that the report substantially reflected the arrest and official action taken by Excise authorities and contained no independent defamatory allegation.
Referring to Sections 499, 500 of the Indian Penal Code, the High Court stressed that criminal defamation law does not punish every publication that adversely affects a person's reputation.
The Court also referred to the principle underlying the Fourth Exception to Section 499 IPC, which protects substantially true reports of court proceedings.
While observing that this exception cannot automatically be extended to police proceedings, the Court said its underlying rationale is relevant when examining substantially accurate reports of official acts such as registration of a crime and arrest.
The key principle laid down by the Court is that an adverse or embarrassing publication, standing alone, is not sufficient to constitute criminal defamation. Liability would depend on whether the publication carries a culpable defamatory imputation beyond a substantially truthful account of the official record.
