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Kerala high court upholds ban on MediaOne channel
The channel was taken off air after the Union home ministry denied it security clearance in January citing serious “security issues”.
Thiruvannathapuram: The Kerala high court on Wednesday upheld the ban on Malayalam news channel MediaOne citing confidential files submitted to it in a sealed cover that convinced it of a threat to national security. It said it was not commenting further on the confidential material in the interest of national security, public order and other aspects concerning the administration of the nation.
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The court said the government has powers to revoke the licence of a channel when it comes to “reasons adverse to the nation’s interest”. “It cannot be said that the renewal of the permission is an absolute right unmindful of other grievous situations once the registration and permission are granted,” said a division bench of chief justice S Manikumar and Justice Shaji P Chaly. It added it found no reason to interfere with the information and broadcasting ministry’s decision to ban the channel.
The channel was taken off the air after the Union home ministry denied it the clearance in January citing serious “security issues”. A single bench of the high court stayed the ban before agreeing with the Centre’s contention on February 8.
Madhyamam Broadcasting Corporation, which runs the channel, its editor Pramod Raman and Kerala Union of Working Journalists later moved the division bench. Their lawyer, Ameen Hassan, said they were unaware of the “serious security reasons” and will file an appeal in the Supreme Court. Raman echoed Hassan.
Senior lawyer Dushyant Dave, who appeared for the petitioners, emphasised the need to uphold the freedom of the press under the Constitution. Additional Solicitor General of India Aman Lekhi defended the single judge’s decision. He quoted Justice N Nagaresh’s observation that the court cannot stay the ban for even an hour after going through the details the Centre submitted. Lekhi said the channel’s telecast was barred over serious national security concerns.
Dave said the channel was abruptly banned even as it was on the air for over a decade under the camouflage of national security. He asked if there were concerns, why was the channel allowed to function all these years.
The 10-year broadcasting licence of the channel expired in September 2021. The Madhyamam Broadcasting Corporation, which is believed to be close to the Jamaat-e-Islami, applied for its renewal in May last year. On December 29, the security clearance was denied to the channel and subsequently, its broadcasting was suspended on January 31.
The channel, which has been off the air since February 8, was suspended for 48 hours for flouting broadcasting rules during the 2020 Delhi riots.
