Danish Siddiqui
According to the award committee, the newspaper “compellingly told and vividly presented account of the assault on Washington on January 6, 2021, providing the public with a thorough and unflinching understanding of one of the nation's darkest days”.
The Pulitzer Board awarded a special citation to the journalists of Ukraine for their “courage, endurance, and commitment to truthful reporting during (President) Vladimir Putin's ruthless invasion of their country and his propaganda war in Russia”.
“Despite bombardment, abductions, occupation, and even deaths in their ranks, they have persisted in their effort to provide an accurate picture of a terrible reality, doing honour to Ukraine and to journalists around the world,” the committee said.
The Pulitzer Prizes were established by Joseph Pulitzer, a Hungarian-American journalist and newspaper publisher, who left money to Columbia University upon his death in 1911. A portion of his bequest was used to found the School of Journalism in 1912 and establish the Pulitzer Prizes, which were first awarded in 1917. The 19-member Pulitzer Board is composed of leading journalists and news executives from media outlets across the US, as well as five academics or persons in the arts. The dean of Columbia's journalism school and the administrator of the prizes are non-voting members. The chair rotates annually to the most senior member or members.
to balance. There are people who are jailed and people who are going to be booked ... Please make your stand clear on this,” the bench added.
The bench also asked how much time the government will take in reconsidering the law. To this, the solicitor general said he cannot give the accurate time, but the process has been initiated and from the tenor and spirit of the affidavit, it was evident that there was an application of mind involved in the process.
“You have used the word competent forum and will re-examine it. Why not the Central government through its ministry issue a direction to the states that the matters under Section 124A (sedition) of the IPC be kept in abeyance till the issue is under reconsideration,” the bench said.
The law officer said such an order has not been passed by the Apex Court in the history of this country directing that a penal provision be not used.
“We are not talking about all provisions. Section 124A only,” the bench said.
The bench said that even in the 1962 judgment of the Kedar Nath Singh case, the provision was melted down, but, at ground level, local police are operating.
“Unless you issue a direction that you are reconsidering the provision and no cases be registered, they will not act,” the bench said.
At the outset, senior lawyer Kapil Sibal, appearing for petitioners, opposed the Centre's response saying that the court cannot be asked to stop hearing a constitutional challenge. The Union Ministry of Home Affairs in an affidavit filed on Tuesday said the decision was in tune with the views of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on shedding colonial baggage, noting he has been in favour of the protection of civil liberties and respect for human rights and in that spirit, over 1,500 outdated laws and over 25,000 compliance burdens have been scrapped.