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New Delhi [India], September 6: The Supreme Court dismissed a Public Interest Litigation on Friday that sought an investigation into media houses and their associates for broadcasting exit polls right after the final phase of the Lok Sabha elections.
A bench consisting of Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, and Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra stated that the PIL was clearly motivated by political interests.
"The government is already in place. Let’s move on from election-related matters and focus on governance. The Election Commission will address these issues, and we will not oversee the Election Commission's work. This is evidently a case of political interest litigation. It is dismissed."
The petition aimed to investigate media houses and their affiliates for airing exit polls immediately after the last phase of the Lok Sabha elections, which allegedly influenced investors and led to a loss of Rs 31 lakh crore when the stock market crashed on June 4.
Filed in June, the petition argued that media houses began discussing exit polls right after the final phase concluded on June 1 and encouraged investors to put money into the stock market until it reopened on June 3, which caused an unexpected rise in market values.
The plea claimed that while the market rose following the exit polls, it plummeted once the actual results were announced.
Advocate BL Jain, who filed the plea, stated that the June 4 market crash resulted in a substantial loss of Rs 31 lakh crore to investors. The petition, submitted through advocate Varun Thakur, argued that such a significant financial loss would negatively impact the Indian economy and India's global reputation.
The petition also criticized media coverage for appearing biased and unregulated, arguing that it violates section 126 A of the Representation of People Act, 1951, and the Election Commission's guidelines from April 2, 2024.
It called for investigations by the CBI, ED, CBDT, SEBI, and SFIO against several media organizations, including Axis My India, India Today Media Plex, Times Now, Independent News Service Private Ltd. (India TV), ABP News Pvt Ltd., Republic Media Network, News National Network Pvt Ltd., TV9 Bharatvarsh, and NDTV.
The petition asserted that the Representation of People Act, 1951, was designed to ensure free and fair elections and regulate the electoral process. It accused media houses of colluding with corporate entities to manipulate election results, thus undermining the principles of democratic elections and the rule of law.
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