The Supreme Court on Friday (October 30, 2026) asked the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) to formulate measures against the commercial exploitation of live-streamed judicial proceedings in violation of earlier court orders.
Advocate Prashant Bhushan suggested that every official clip released by the court should carry a verifiable digital signature or watermark, enabling the public and digital platforms to distinguish genuine footage from manipulated versions. The court had recently passed orders banning the unauthorised use and circulation of live-streamed judicial proceedings on social media and digital platforms, saying that anything meant for the public good cannot be exploited commercially for personal gain. He further suggested that all court proceedings should be made available on the Supreme Court’s website in an authenticated and watermarked format. The court is examining the issue amid concerns over the unauthorised extraction, modification, circulation, and commercial use of video clips of judicial proceedings, often accompanied by misleading captions or representations.
“Necessary measures for taking action against those who fail to comply with the directions will also be incorporated in the policy regime,” the court observed.
He also flagged violations of earlier orders and urged the court to consider directing the removal of material uploaded in breach of its restrictions.
