Journalists need to stand up to protect constitutional rights, says Justice Lokur

He said journalists had to be a lot more cautious than in the past and asked where this had left the freedom of the press.

Journalists need to stand up to protect their constitutional rights, Justice (retired) Madan B. Lokur said on Saturday, speaking at the International Press Institute India award ceremony.

Justice Lokur, the chairman of the award jury, said: “It is a matter of common knowledge that the press is under attack in many ways. Many journalists have been arrested and kept in prison for a considerable period of time. Many others have had FIRs filed against them for the same reason.”

He said journalists had to be a lot more cautious than in the past and asked where this had left the freedom of the press.

“We need to think about this and journalists need to stand up to protect their constitutional and fundamental rights so that accusations of a ‘godi’ media or a somewhat compromised media do not become descriptive of the print and audio-visual media across the country,” Justice Lokur said.

At the ceremony, eminent journalist Mark Tully presented the IPI India award for excellence in journalism for 2020 to Ritika Chopra of The Indian Express. The 2021 award was awarded jointly to Sreenivasan Jain and Mariyam Alavi of NDTV, and Lakshmi Subramanian and Bhanu Prakash Chandra of The Week. 

Mr. Tully said journalists should aim for balance in their writing. “It is not your story but the story of the person you are reporting on. Look for ways to bring balance,” he said. He spoke of his experiences during the Emergency when he was asked to leave the country in 24 hours.

“The information was blacked out then. The situation is different today as information is available, and there are various sources available, but it doesn't deny the fact that there are pressures on the press. We should keep media alive. We should keep the flame of information alive,” Mr. Tully said.