Contempt of Courts Act, 1971
7. Publication of information relating to proceeding in
chambers or in camera not contempt except in certain cases
(1) Notwithstanding anything contained in this Act, a person
shall not be guilty of contempt of court for publishing a fair and accurate
report of a judicial proceeding before any court sitting in chambers or in camera
except in the following cases, that is to say-
(a) where the publication is contrary to the
provisions of any enactment for the time being in force;
(b) where the court, on ground of public
policy or in exercise of any power vested in it, expressly prohibits the
publication of all information relating to the proceeding or of information of
the description which is published;
(c) where the court sits in chambers or in
camera for reason connected with public order or the security of the State, the
publication of information relating to those proceedings;
(d) where the information relates to a secret
process, discovery or invention which is an issue in proceedings.
(2) Without prejudice to the provisions contained in sub-section
(1), a person shall not be guilty of contempt of court for publishing the text
or a fair and accurate summary of the whole or any part, of an order made by a
court sitting in chambers or in camera, unless the court has expressly
prohibited the publication thereof on grounds of public policy, or for reasons
connected with public order or the security of the State, or on the ground that
it contains information relating to a secret process, discovery or invention,
or in exercise of any power vested in it.