HC to hear plea of ex-SC judge on May 19

The Delhi High Court today fixed for May 19 the hearing on the law suit of former Supreme Court judge Swatanter Kumar seeking to restrain the media from reporting the alleged sexual harassment case against him.
"Pleadings shall be complete within four weeks from today. Rejoinder/replication shall be filed three weeks thereafter. Fix it for hearing on May 19," Justice Rajiv Sahai Endlaw said.
Besides the alleged law intern, who filed her written statement in a sealed cover, various media houses also filed their responses to the petition of Justice Kumar who is heading the National Green Tribunal.
The court had on January 16 barred publication and telecast of a law intern's complaint of sexual harassment allegations against Justice Kumar.

The court had said adverse publicity against judges should be "handled with care and caution" as it may prejudice people's faith in the higher judiciary.
"The defendants (three media houses and woman law intern), their agents, assigns or any of them acting on their behalf and/or any other person, entity, in print or electronic media or internet are:

"Restrained from further publishing the write-ups as mentioned ... Of the documents file or publishing any article or write-up and telecast which highlights the allegations against the plaintiff in the form of headlines connecting or associating plaintiff with those allegations, particularly, without disclosing in the headlines of article that they are mere allegations against the plaintiff or any other similar nature of articles, write-up and telecast," it had said in the interim order.

Besides the law intern, two English news channels and an English daily were made parties by Justice Kumar.
The court had asked them to delete the "offending" contents and the photograph of Justice Kumar from "internet or other electronic media" within 24 hours and file a compliance report within a week.