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Calcutta High Court Grants Anticipatory Bail to Reporter for His Article on Illegal Mining

Contents of this Page

The Petitioner is a news reporter who has applied for an anticipatory bail in the Calcutta High Court. The bail is against the arrest that is likely to happen. The Respondents insisted that the petitioner is taken into custody because of the article published by him. The publication is on the online-offline portal about illegal mining.

Facts of the case

The petitioner, in this case, is a reporter. He published a news article on the online-official porta about the illegal mining of sand. The article mentions a few persons who are transporting sand from riverbed illegally. The petitioner did not receive a notice under Section 41 A of the Criminal Procedure Code.

Decision of Court

After considering the facts, the Court decided that the press reporter intended to make the public aware of the occurrence of any illegal activity. The Court views the report to be of help for authorities to take action. It is not concerned with falsity or truth of the publication. They view the report as an eye-opener to the illegal mining happening.

The Court believes the report as an eye-opener to people and viewed it from an environmental perspective. The aftermath of Amphan and COVID-19 is still echoing. The situation will aggravate if illegal mining is happening. The press report has lead the Court to direct authorities to take action in the matter. In light of the same, the petitioner was granted anticipatory bail. On his arrest, the Court orders his release on bail with a personal bond of Rs. 2000.


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