Article 361A

Constitutional Immunity for Press Reporting of Legislative Proceedings

Official heading: “Protection of publication of proceedings of Parliament and State Legislatures”

Check this article against the official editionAwaiting human legal review

Source edition: The Constitution of India (as on 1 May 2026)
Source locator: Part XIX, Article 361A, printed page 220
Last human source-link check: Not yet checked
Last human legal review: Not yet reviewed

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1. In One Sentence

Protects journalists and media from civil or criminal liability for publishing substantially true reports of parliamentary and state legislative proceedings, unless motivated by malice.

2. What It Means in Everyday Language

Inserted by the Constitution (Forty-fourth Amendment) Act, 1978, Article 361A constitutionalized the historic statutory protection originally championed by Parliamentarian Feroze Gandhi in 1956.

It guarantees that no person (including journalists and media publishers) shall be liable to civil or criminal proceedings in any court for publishing a substantially true report of proceedings of either House of Parliament or a State Legislative Assembly.

The protection applies across newspapers, broadcasts, and modern media channels.

Under the proviso, this immunity is lost if the publication is proved to have been made with malice, or if it involves a secret sitting of the House.

3. Practical Illustrative Example

Everyday Scenario:

A newspaper publishes a factual transcript of a heated parliamentary debate in which an MP accused a corporation of financial impropriety.

Core takeaway: Under Article 361A, the corporation cannot sue the newspaper for defamation because the report was a substantially true account of public legislative proceedings.

Illustrative Notice: The protection does not apply if the reporting is malicious or if the speech was expunged by the Speaker or occurred during an in-camera secret sitting.

4. Important Limits, Qualifications & Exceptions

Article 361A safeguards free speech and media transparency regarding democratic debates.

Substantially true standard: Protects factual reporting of proceedings in Parliament and State Legislatures.
Civil and criminal shield: Protects against both civil defamation actions and criminal prosecution.
Exceptions: Inapplicable to publications made with malice, secret sittings, or expunged portions.

5. Operative Constitutional Text

(1) No person shall be liable to any civil or criminal proceedings in any court in respect of the publication in a newspaper of a substantially true report of any proceedings of either House of Parliament or the Legislative Assembly, or, as the case may be, either House of the Legislature, of a State, unless the publication is proved to have been made with malice: Provided that nothing in this clause shall apply to the publication of any report of the proceedings of a secret sitting of either House of Parliament or the Legislative Assembly, or, as the case may be, either House of the Legislature, of a State. (2) Clause (1) shall apply in relation to reports or matters broadcast by means of wireless telegraphy as part of any programme or service provided by means of a broadcasting station as it applies in relation to reports or matters published in a newspaper. Explanation.—In this article, "newspaper" includes a news agency report containing material for publication in a newspaper.

Transcription for reference; compare with the linked official editionNot yet verified by a human legal reviewer

6. Sources & Historical Assembly Deliberations

Assembly quotations are withheld until wording, dates, and attribution have been checked against the primary record.

Sources & Citation Metadata

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Constitutional TextThe Constitution of India (as on 1 May 2026)Cited PDF page
Government of India (Legislative Department, Ministry of Law and Justice) • Part XIX, Article 361A, printed page 220 • Human source-link check pending
Primary PDF accessed and transcribed with AI assistance on 14 October 2026. Formatting and amendment annotation markers are omitted; operative wording is retained. This is not human legal review. Later amendments and commencement notifications have not been comprehensively checked.

Human legal review is pending; compare the text with the cited editionNon-partisan educational resource