MediaOne TV ban
Malayalam news channel MediaOne TV banned as Centre refuses to give security clearance
Thiruvananthapuram/IBNS: Malayalam television new channel MediaOne TV has gone off the air after its name was removed from the list of permitted channels by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.
According to media reports, the Ministry denied renewing the channel's license after the "Union home ministry's refusal to give security clearance".
MediaOne TV said it is exploring legal options and for now it has stopped the broadcast.
The channel had applied for broadcast permissions to be renewed from September 30, 2021, to September 29, 2031.
In a statement, Mediaone TV editor Pramod Raman said: "The ministry has said the ban was due to security reasons, but the channel is yet to get the details on it. The Union Government has not made the details about the ban available to Mediaone TV."
"We have started legal action against the ban. After completing the process, the channel would be back to the audience. We are suspending the broadcasting temporarily with the hope that justice will prevail at last,'' the statement read.
Opposing the Centre's move, Indian Union Muslim League MLA MK Muneer tweeted: "I&B ministry's decision to revoke the license of Media One is arbitrary and highly condemnable. This is silencing of critical voices. GoI must remove the ban ASAP!"
I&B ministry's decision to revoke the license of Media One is arbitrary and highly condemnable. This is silencing of critical voices. GoI must remove the ban ASAP!
— Dr. M.K. Muneer (@MKMUNEER) January 31, 2022
In 2020, MediaOne TV was taken off air for the first time after the I&B Ministry said it violated provisions of the Cable Television Networks Rules, 1994 during its coverage of the violence in Delhi in connection to the protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act.
The notification was issued after a Delhi-based correspondent claimed: "vandals had fired at an anti-CAA protest site from a rooftop from 2 pm to 9 pm and around five anti-CAA protesters were injured."
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