Mediaone channel logo I @MediaonetvL  |  Photo Credit: Twitter
New Delhi: The Information and Broadcasting (I&B) Ministry has banned popular Malayalam news channel MediaOne TV, citing “security concerns”.
This is the second time that the Centre has suspended the telecasting of Kerala’s leading news channel. The government had earlier briefly suspended the channel over its “biased” coverage of the Delhi riots, stating that its report sided “towards a particular community” among other violations of the Cable TV Act.
MediaOne is run by Jamaat-e-Islami.
“MediaOne channel telecast has once again been disallowed by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Government of India, citing security reasons. The Goverment has not been forthcoming with the details,” channel’s editor Pramod Raman said in a press release.
He further said that they are taking urgent legal steps for the restoration of the channel, adding they are confident that the “justice will prevail”
“MediaOne is taking urgent legal steps for the restoration of the channel, and hope to get back to the viewers as soon as we can. For the time being, we are suspending our telecast, confident that justice will prevail,” the release read.
Indian Union Muslim League MP ET Muhammed Basheer criticised the decision and said that it is an attempt to silence the “political dissent through outright fascism”.
“Centre’s ban on MediaOne TV is highly reprehensible. This is the second time that the Central Government has imposed a ban on MediaOne TV. Yet another attempt to silence the political dissent through outright fascism. All people of India should unite against this tyranny,” he tweeted.