Supreme Court Protects Journalist Mamta Tripathi Amidst Defamation Dispute

The Supreme Court has directed the Uttar Pradesh government to respond to a plea challenging criminal proceedings against journalist Mamta Tripathi, who faces a defamation case. The court extended interim protection, preventing coercive action, and questioned the legitimacy of making the complaint a cognisable offence.

On Friday, the Supreme Court issued an order to the Uttar Pradesh government to furnish a response concerning a plea to nullify criminal proceedings against journalist Mamta Tripathi. This case pertains to a defamation accusation linked to a published news article.

A bench, including Justices MM Sundresh and Rajesh Bindal, expressed reservations about the accusations against Tripathi, questioning the transformation of what should be a private defamation case into a cognisable offence by authorities. In light of these concerns, the court extended the interim protection previously granted to Tripathi, restraining any state-led coercive actions.

The allegations against Tripathi originate from her news story detailing aspects of the Uttar Pradesh government's administration, resulting in multiple FIRs citing defamation. Initially, the court provided interim protection to Tripathi in October 2024, and this was further extended on March 26 for four weeks. Today, the court has once again prolonged this protective measure. (ANI)

(With inputs from agencies.)