Jada Court asks media to exercise restraint

Mumbai, Sep 19 (UNI) Designated TADA judge P D Kode, who is presiding over the 1993 Mumbai serial blasts case, today asked the media to exercise restraint and not speculate on the proceedings of the court.

He asked the media not to interview the accused in the court premises and refrain from speculating as this could interfere with the future work of the court. The media is entitled to criticise after the full judgement is passed, he said.

Special public prosecutor Ujjwal Nikam informed the court about the interviews being conducted within the court premises and said he felt ''threatened'' by relatives of those who spoke to the media after their conviction.

Defence counsel Farhana Shah said the opinion poll run by various TV channels should also stop.

The accused, then, stood up and protested against the photographs published in the media. They called for a boycott of the special public prosecutor and alleged that photos taken of them by the administration in 1993 were being supplied by the police to the media. Yakub Memon, who has been convicted in the case, said they would not entertain the media and were concerned only about their lives.

The judge told the accused that the verdict was delivered by the court and not by the media. He asked the defence laywer to talk to the accused in private and submit their grievances before the court.

UNI XR MAZ SAM PM1811