The Allahabad High Court has stayed criminal proceedings against a journalist accused of misrepresenting the condition of a government school in Lucknow, saying authorities should have addressed the reported deficiencies instead of pursuing the reporter, The Indian Express reported on Thursday.
A bench of Justices Abdul Moin and Pramod Kumar Srivastava said the government’s response appeared to be driven by an “ego issue” and described the action against the journalist as amounting to “killing the messenger”.
The court said the government had a legal obligation under India’s Right to Education Act, 2009, to ensure schools met prescribed standards. Officials should have focused on correcting any shortcomings highlighted in the report rather than registering a criminal case against the journalist, it said.
The court was hearing a petition by journalist Amit Yadav challenging a first information report filed against him on Aug. 24 at Gosaiganj police station in Lucknow under provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
Yadav said he had visited Purva Madhyamik Vidyalaya in Gosaiganj on Aug. 20 while carrying out his reporting duties. His report alleged that the school was poorly maintained, citing dirty toilets, a lack of drinking water and other shortcomings.
Authorities subsequently filed a case against him, alleging that the school was in good condition and its toilets were clean, The Indian Express reported.
The FIR accused Yadav of entering the school without permission, disrupting classes and pressuring two female teachers to comment on the school’s condition. It also alleged that his report was motivated by political considerations.
The court said photographs presented before it appeared, on a preliminary assessment, to show the “abysmal condition” of the school’s toilets and premises.
It also ordered Uttar Pradesh’s additional chief secretary for basic education to submit a personal affidavit within four weeks detailing the current condition of the school, PTI reported.
Yadav later thanked the court in a social media post, describing the ruling as a “victory of truth over lies”.
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