A rape accused has moved to the Kerala High Court seeking orders to protect his right to privacy and dignity until the conclusion of his trial in the case. He has therefore sought directions to take down the articles written about him on The New Indian Express and the bail orders published on Indian Kanoon.

The petitioner has asserted that even an accused facing trial is entitled to the right to dignity and privacy which are guaranteed Articles 14, 19 and 21 of the Constitution of India.

“It is witnessed in many cases that media blatantly points fingers at anyone and cast aspersions on any institution in the name of fundamental right guaranteed to them, the doctrine of- innocence until proven guilty’ is openly flouted and the fundamental right of the accused to have a fair trial’ is trampled upon,” the plea said.

The petitioner is accused in a rape case and a crime was registered against him for allegedly committing offences punishable under Sections 376(2)(1) and 376(2)(n).
After spending over a month in judicial custody, he was released on bail by the Kerala High Court.

The petitioner has raised concern about the impact of the media coverage of criminal cases on the rights to privacy of the accused and it’s family members even before the conclusion of the trials are declared as every individual accused of a crime is presumed to be innocent until proven guilty.

The article and bail order publishedon the website of Indian Kanoon has his name and full address, where he resides with his wife and two minor daughters, the plea states.

Moreover, the online articles got circulated in the petitioner’s professional circle, due to which he had to step down from some of his roles in the companies he worked for.

The plea also states that “in the age of rapid evolution of technology there is faster and uncontrolled dissemination of information and often, misinformation.”

On the above mentioned grounds, the petitioner has sought orders from the High Court to protect his dignity, reputation and privacy, until the conclusion of his trial.

The petitioner is represented by advocates Geo Paul, Prem Kammath, CR Pramod, Radhika Rajasekharan, S Ashok Kumar, Simi V, Jacob George Pallath, Naveen TU and Anil K Vincent.