The ministry also said it “warns” the channel to be “careful in the future.” (Figurative)
New Delhi:
Private television channel Sudarshan TV can air the pending episodes of its controversial show ‘Bindas Bol’ only after appropriate “modifications” and “moderations”, the government told the Supreme Court on Wednesday. The Information and Broadcasting Ministry said the “UPSC Jihad” program, which showed episodes about Muslims “infiltrating government services”, was not in “good taste” and is likely to “promote community attitudes.”
The ministry also said it “warns” the channel to be “careful in the future.”
The “UPSC Jihad” program, which also involved criticism of the Union Public Service Commission, which runs the prestigious competitions for top government officials, had sparked outrage and the matter had reached the Supreme Court earlier this year.
In one of its first hearings in the case, the high court said the show was an attempt to vilify Muslims and banned the show from broadcasting. “You cannot target a community and mark it in a particular way,” the judges had said.
The government had told the court that the prima facie channel violated the program’s code and they were sent a demo notice. The court had asked the center to deal with the issue of notification in accordance with the law and to submit a report on its decision.
The guidelines of the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting of the Rules of the Cable Television Network of 1994 say that no program should be broadcast that “contains attacks on religions or communities or visual elements or words that disparage religious groups or promote attitudes community “.
In an affidavit filed today, the ministry said the channel, in its response, had cited the fundamental right to freedom of expression and argued that its program was not directed at a particular community, but rather sought to highlight the activities of a organization.
“However, the way the channel has conducted its presentation, including its comments on the selection process, the civil services examination, portrays a community and the UPSC in low light, and the channel could have avoided statements and videos that were neither in good taste nor decency, ”the ministry said in its affidavit, adding that it agreed with the conclusions of the ministerial commission set up on the matter, which had noticed changes in the pending episodes.
“Although freedom of speech and expression is a fundamental right, the tone and tenor of the broadcast episodes do indicate that the channel has … breached the Program Code. The Ministry considers that they are not in good taste, offensive and with possibilities of promoting communal attitudes, “said the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.
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