K’taka mulling over new law to prevent political conspiracies: Minister

Bengaluru, March 6 : A day after half-a-dozen Karnataka ministers moved to a Bengaluru city court in connection with the recent sleaze CD case, state Health Minister K. Sudhakar said on Saturday that the state government is mulling over to bring a law to prevent the media from being misused to defame political opponents.
Sudhakar is one of the six ministers who have approached a local court seeking legal intervention to prevent their names from being ‘maligned with an intent to defame’ them.
Speaking to reporters here, Sudhakar said that there seems to be a big political conspiracy to defame the opponents by misusing the media.
“There is a new trend to indulge in hit-and-run allegations, which is unethical, immoral and illegal. It is necessary to put an end to such smear campaigns aimed at tarnishing the image of individuals and destroy the goodwill gained from years of good work. Therefore, the state government is thinking of bringing a law to check such kinds of mischief,” he said.
The minister added that it is not confined to only politicians, as celebrities from various walks of life are subjected to this kind of conspiracy.
“Both mainstream media and social media platforms are being misused to peddle misinformation and fake news. If there is truth in the allegations, no one can be protected. But a smear campaign to tarnish the image and goodwill of a person is not acceptable,” he said.