The Supreme Court on Wednesday stayed the proceedings arising out of FIRs registered by the Tripura police against the HW News Network and its journalists -- Samriddhi Sakunia and Swarnja Jha -- over the reports on communal violence in the State.
A Bench headed by Justice DY Chandrachud also issued notice to Tripura police on a plea filed by Theos Connect, which operates the digital news portal HW News Network, and two journalists requesting to quash first information reports (FIRs) registered against them.
Sakunia and Jha were booked under Sections 120B (criminal conspiracy), 153A (promoting enmity between religious groups) and 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace) of the Indian Penal Code.
The Tripura police had registered the FIRs alleging that the reports of the journalists promoted enmity between groups and spread communal hatred by publishing baseless news about communal violence.
The petitioners, however, have contended that the offence of hate speech alleged against them is bizarre as the journalists' endeavour was fact-finding and ground reporting of the communal riots which took place in Tripura.
The two FIRs registered against them are inspired by politics as the reports of the petitioners had no element of purported spreading of hatred and enmity between communities, they said in the plea.
( With inputs from ANI )
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