To save reputations, Sibal opposes live-streaming, but SC rejects plea | India News

NEW DELHI: Senior advocate Kapil Sibal on Tuesday made an impassioned plea to stop live streaming of Supreme Court‘s suo motu proceedings on the rape-murder incident at R G Kar Hospital saying judges’ comments on the highly emotive issue results in besmirching reputations of lawyers appearing for West Bengal government.
Sibal told a bench of Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud, and Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra that he has grave concerns about what is happening.”SC initiated suo motu proceedings to find out what is happening on the ground. We as a state are prepared to inform the court as to what is happening,” he said.
“If court live streams matters like this, which are of huge emotive importance, the moment the court makes some comments, even though we are here to tell everything we know on behalf of the state, our reputations are tarnished. We have earned the reputation through 50 years of legal practice, which is being overnight destroyed,” Sibal said. When the CJI said, “We will bear that in mind,” Sibal said,” the SC has held in Swapnil Tripathi (2018) case that matters of this nature should not be live streamed.”
The CJI said the court would not stop live streaming of the proceedings in the RG Kar case. “It is a matter of public importance and let people know what transpires in the courtroom in this case.” Sibal said, “Our reputations are also important. We cannot be vilified in this manner.”
Referring to a comment from solicitor general two hearings back accusing Sibal of laughing when the court was dealing with a heinous offence involving a young girl, Sibal said “When was I laughing? I was not laughing. It is the most heinous crime that was committed. There are threats to women lawyers in our chambers. Acid will be thrown on us, we will be raped…That is what is happening on the ground. This is not fair.”
The CJI said, “If there is any threat to women or men lawyers in this case, whichever side they are appearing for, we will take care of it.” Sibal said, “What can the court do when people on the ground are saying this to us.”