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Six years after a petition was filed, Gujarat remains the only state in India whose legislative assembly does not livestream its proceedings. And the courts are yet to break the deadlock.

A scheduled hearing on a public interest litigation seeking mandatory live telecast of assembly proceedings could not be taken up by the Gujarat high court last Friday (March 27). The PIL has been pending since 2020.

Gujarat reportedly stands alone among all 30 state assemblies in the country in refusing to broadcast its proceedings live. Videography and photography inside the House are also barred without prior authorisation.

The timing is critical here. The assembly recently wrapped up a month-long Budget Session on March 25, during which lawmakers passed significant legislation, including the adoption of a Uniform Civil Code and an amendment to the Disturbed Areas Act. Both the Aam Aadmi Party and the Congress had demanded live coverage during the session. Neither demand was met, according to reports.

The opposition Congress had made a similar demand the previous year as well.

There was a flicker of hope in September 2023. Gujarat adopted the National eVidhan Application (NeVA). It’s a secure digital........

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