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Supreme Court of India 2024-03-22 disposed

India Private Limited & Ors vs Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited

Bench: 3 — Dr Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud, J B Pardiwala, Manoj Misra

In Brief

A media platform and its journalists challenged an ex-parte court order requiring them to remove an article and refrain from publishing it. The Supreme Court held that interim injunctions against media publications must not be granted without detailed reasoned analysis of whether they satisfy the requirements for such relief. Courts must weigh the fundamental right to free speech against claims of defamation. Except in exceptional cases where content is demonstrably false or malicious, the respondent must be heard before an injunction is granted. An unreasoned injunction order amounts to censorship and was set aside, with directions for the trial judge to rehear the application considering these principles.

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Defamation Freedom of Speech and Expression Pre-trial Injunctions Media Law Civil Procedure Constitutional Law SLAPP Suits

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