Publication of Unverified Photographs and Videos Related to Ongoing Investigations and Court Cases on Electronic, Print, and Social Media.

It has been observed that photographs, videos, or edited or unedited footage including AI-generated or AI-edited content  related to cases pending before courts, cases to be presented to courts in the future, and cases currently under investigation, are being circulated through various media platforms without verification.

It has also been noted that such footage often pertains to drug raids, investigations into certain crimes, and other controversial incidents. Furthermore, the circulation of these photographs, videos, and edited or unedited AI-generated footage has been found to exert undue pressure on victims and witnesses, thereby creating adverse situations during ongoing investigations and court proceedings.

According to the Establishments Code of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, there are restrictions on the provision of information to the media. Accordingly, only the Secretary to the Ministry, the Head of the Department, or any officer authorized at the discretion of the Head of the Department may provide information to the media. Therefore, photographs and video footage containing accurate and verified information regarding the above incidents will be released to all media organizations solely by the Police Media Division. The Sri Lanka Police will take full responsibility for all such officially released photographs and video footage.

Therefore, media heads and individuals are hereby informed that they will be held accountable for disseminating false or unverified information, including edited or unedited photographs or videos as mentioned above. In such cases, the respective institutions and individuals will also be held liable if questioned by aggrieved parties in a court of law.

However, it is kindly noted that this directive in no way violates or restricts the fundamental rights of citizens as guaranteed by the Constitution.