SC Protects Senior ‘The Wire’ Journalists From Arrest By Assam Police

On Friday, the Supreme Court granted protection from arrest to Siddharth Varadarajan, the founding editor of The Wire, and Karan Thapar, a consulting editor, in relation to an FIR filed by the Assam Police against them concerning a news article. A bench comprising Justices Suryakant and Joymalya Bagchi emphasized the importance of adhering to the law, stating, “Everyone is expected to follow the law,” and urged the journalists to cooperate with the investigation. The court also requested that they submit a status report at the next hearing.

The order was issued in response to a plea filed by Varadarajan and the Foundation for Independent Journalism (FIJ), which owns The Wire. Senior advocate Nitya Ramakrishnan, representing the journalists, highlighted that the FIR in question dates back to May and was filed shortly after the Supreme Court had previously granted her clients protection in another case. She argued that the Assam Police appeared to be circumventing the court’s orders, expressing concern that they were inclined to initiate successive FIRs, which created a “genuine apprehension of arrest.”

When Ramakrishnan raised the possibility of further FIRs and the threat of arrest, the bench responded, “We are watching,” indicating their awareness of the situation and the potential implications for press freedom.

This latest development follows a previous order from the Supreme Court on August 12, which had protected Varadarajan and restrained the Assam Police from taking any coercive action against him in connection with an FIR related to an article on Operation Sindoor. The initial FIR was registered by the Guwahati Crime Branch on May 9, accusing Varadarajan and Thapar under Section 152 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, which pertains to acts that endanger the sovereignty, unity, and integrity of India.

In a related incident, the Guwahati police registered an FIR against journalist and YouTuber Abhisar Sharma on Thursday. The FIR alleges that Sharma ridiculed both the Assam and Union governments in a video. The charges against him invoke Sections 152 (sedition), 196, and 197 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (BNS). According to the complainant, Alok Baruah, a 23-year-old resident of Nayanpur, “Sharma also mocked the principle of Ram Rajya and claimed that the government survives only on Hindu-Muslim polarization.”

These incidents raise significant concerns about press freedom and the potential for misuse of legal provisions to stifle dissenting voices in India. As the legal proceedings unfold, the implications for journalists and the broader media landscape remain to be seen. The Supreme Court’s intervention highlights the ongoing tension between state authority and the rights of journalists to report freely and responsibly.