Attack on journos ethically and politically wrong: Sarah Joseph

Thrissur: Lawyers had insulted the people in the state by not allowing reporters inside the court, writer and activist Sarah Joseph said. Speaking at the memorial meeting of veteran journalist T.V. Achutha Warrier here at the Sahithya Akademi Hall on Sunday, she said that by taking such a stand against journalists, the lawyer community had conveyed the message that the public need not know what happened inside the courts. Delivering her lecture on the topic ‘Judicial Activism and Media Activism’ she said that the attack on mediapersons in the courts was ethically and politically wrong.

“As the lawyers did not like what the media wrote about them, they retaliated. But the judges have a responsibility to get involved in the matter and find a solution ,” she said. She added that both the judiciary and media should function in a way that the democratic system got strengthened. “It is relevant to think at this juncture of what the government had done in settling the issue between the media and the lawyers. The government was insensitive and silent on the issue.  Democracy is getting undermined by shutting the court gates on journalists,” she added. Agriculture minister V.S. Sunil Kumar was also present at the event.