NEW DELHI — The Supreme Court of India announced on Friday (July 31, 2026) that it intends to establish a formalized protocol allowing online users to access and share livestreamed judicial proceedings from its official archives, aimed at curbing misuse while safeguarding judicial transparency.

The move comes after intense pushback from civil rights activists against a blanket ban issued by the court a week prior regarding the circulation of court recordings on digital and social media platforms./

Key Highlights of the Case

  • The Initial Interim Order (July 24, 2026): The Supreme Court issued an interim order barring any extraction, dissemination, reposting, or monetization of audio-visual court proceedings without explicit prior permission from the Secretary General of the Supreme Court or Registrar Generals of State High Courts. The court cited concerns over judges, lawyers, and litigants becoming vulnerable to trolling, reputational harm, and sensationalized clips taken out of context.
  • Activist Pushback on "Open Justice": Activists Anjali Bhardwaj and Amrita Johri—represented by senior advocate Prashant Bhushan and Cheryl D'Souza—filed an application seeking a modification of the blanket prohibition. They argued that banning the circulation of live proceedings reversed the fundamental "principle of open justice," which holds the judicial system accountable to the public and guards against arbitrariness.
  • The Proposed Compromise: During the hearing on July 31, Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant clarified that the court's intention was not to restrict open access, but strictly to prevent "commercial exploitation" and malicious editing of court footage.
  • Building a Protocol: The Bench noted that the process is non-adversarial and invited suggestions from the applicants, legal experts, tech platforms (including Meta and WhatsApp), and State High Courts to draft a clear protocol. Under the proposed framework, users will be permitted to access and share official, unedited recordings directly from designated court archives under clear terms of fair use.