24-05-2025
3 ThePrint journalists win prestigious Justice Media Award for demystifying the law for the people
'We are all part of the fourth pillar of democracy. The Bar cannot be segregated from the media because the Bar is the biggest champion of civil rights and rights of citizens,' former Supreme Court judge and India International Arbitration Centre chairperson Hemant Gupta, chief guest at the award ceremony, said in his keynote address.
Sumedha Manhas also received an award for a report she wrote for ThePrint.
New Delhi: Three journalists of the ThePrint, Apoorva Mandhani, Bismee Taskin and Khadija Khan, were Friday conferred the Justice Media Award 2024-25 by the North Delhi Lawyers' Association (NDLA) in recognition for their contributions towards enhancing public understanding of justice, and the legal system.
The awards were presented during the NDLA Annual Conference at the India Habitat Centre. This year's theme—'Bar, Bench & News Reports: A Bridge between Common citizens'—underscored the importance of transparent, accessible legal reporting in strengthening democracy.
Advocate Vineet Jindal, secretary general of the NDLA, emphasised the association's commitment to fostering a symbiotic relationship between the judiciary, the Bar, and the media.
'This conference is more than an event—it's a movement. Journalists are the lens through which most citizens see the law,' he said.
Apoorva Mandhani, a senior assistant editor at ThePrint, received an award in the Legal Anchoring category. Covering politics and the judiciary, she has become one of the organisation's key voices decoding complex legal proceedings for a wide viewership and readership.
Principal Correspondent Bismee Taskin was recognised in the category of Legal Investigative Reporting. She primarily reports on crime and national security and has consistently covered complex legal investigations in considerable detail.
Senior Correspondent Khadija Khan was honoured in the Legal Reporting category. Her reportage spans the judiciary, Parliament, policy issues and intellectual property rights (IPR) law, offering detailed insights into areas often underexplored in mainstream news.
Recalling his early days as a lawyer, Justice Gupta shared a telling anecdote, 'Before filing a writ petition, I wanted to read the judgment of a case. I couldn't find the copy in my office, but to my surprise, a journalist had it before I did. That's how efficient legal reporters can be.'
Other guests in attendance included Justice M.M. Kumar, former Chief Justice of the J&K High Court and member of the NHRC, Justice B.R. Sarangi, NHRC member and former Chief Justice of the Jharkhand High Court, Ashok Srivastav, senior editor and anchor at DD News, and P.K. Malhotra, former law secretary and patron of the NDLA.
Kartikay Chaturvedi is an intern who graduated from ThePrint School of Journalism.
(Edited by Gitanjali Das)
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