Concern over journalist's expulsion from open hearing

Freedom Forum has been concerned over an incident that a journalist was expelled from open hearing in the Supreme Court on April 29, 2013. Legal reporter with the Kantipur daily, Ghanashyam Khadka, was expelled during the open hearing presided over by Justice Girish Chandra Lal and Justice Tarka Raj Bhatta merely on a ground of his dress though the Supreme had not fixed any dress code yet for the journalists. It was therefore against his right to free reporting and a restriction on citizen's right to information. If the hearing was close, journalists could not have entered otherwise the bench is always open. And, the journalists must have appeared on proper dress code if the court had issued. Freedom Forum is for the balanced relations between press and judiciary because press Freedom and independent judiciary are complementary to each other. Therefore, both journalists and court need to respect each other for their independence.