Mumbai: The Kerala high court on Tuesday dismissed the petition of Malayalam news channel Media One TV challenging the government’s order barring its transmission after the ministry of home affairs refused security clearance for renewal of the channel’s license.
The bench of Justice N Nagaresh dismissed the appeal after going through the files submitted by the ministry of home affairs following the ban order issued by the ministry of information and broadcasting. The court observed that there are sufficient grounds for denying permission for the renewal of the channel’s license.
Madhyamam Broadcasting Ltd which operates the channel MediaOne had applied for renewal of permission on 3 May 2021 was denied security clearance by the ministry of home affairs. In response to a show-cause notice sent by the I&B ministry, the company mentioned that they are “unaware of the grounds for denial of security clearance.”
According to the I&B ministry order, clause 9.2 of the uplinking guidelines stipulates that security clearance of a company and its directors is a prerequisite condition for grant of permission for TV channels which is up for renewal every ten years.
Subsequently, MediaOne posted a statement on its social media handles stating that it would take legal steps against the I&B ministry’s order. This is the second time that the MediaOne channel has been barred from airing. In March 2020, Asianet News and MediaOne TV had been barred for 48 hours by the I&B ministry citing security concerns.
