ITV

Tag: Subramanian Swamy

  • IPL: BCCI tells SC rights bidding process under way, hearing on 22 Aug

    IPL: BCCI tells SC rights bidding process under way, hearing on 22 Aug

    MUMBAI: The Supreme Court sent a legal notice to the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI)  enquiring why the IPL media rights auction has not taken place online. And, BCCI told the court that e-auction of rights was not possible and that the court should not intervene as the bidding process was already under way.

    The auction process for IPL media rights is in progress up to 28 August, and the rights would operate for a period of five years. BJP MP Subramanian Swamy had, on 11 July, filed a petition before the apex court asking why broadcast rights for cricket matches would not be sold through e-auction. He had mentioned that the BCCI should have gone for e-auction since a huge amount of Rs 300 billion was at stake.

    The court had directed the board to respond in two weeks.

    The bench, comprising Justices AM Khanwilkar and Dipak Misra, has asked the Committee of Administrators (CoA), appointed by it, to assist the apex court in deciding the issue. The next hearing is now scheduled for 22 August.

    IPL’s TV broadcast rights were held by Sony Pictures Networks till the 10th edition which concluded in June. The Internet and mobile rights were awarded to Novi Digital Entertainment Pvt. Ltd (Hotstar), a unit of Star India, for a period of three years to 2017.

    Singapore-based World Sport Group pocketed the IPL broadcasting rights for 10 years in 2008 by investing US$ 918 million. A year later, the contract was replaced when Sony Group (through Multi Screen Media Pvt. Ltd) paid US$ 1.63 billion for the nine-year broadcasting rights. The auction process was delayed last year on the Supreme Court’s directive to first comply with the Lodha panel reforms.

    Facebook, Reliance Jio, Twitter, Sony Pictures Network India and Star India were some of the major companies who picked up the tender document. While the television broadcast rights for the Indian subcontinent is for 10 seasons (up to 2027), the digital rights are valid for five seasons and the international media rights also are for five seasons.

     

    Also Read: IPL: Media rights race hots up after IMG renews events deal

    Swamy seeks transparency in IPL media rights through SC

    IPL tendering process to commence 17 July; bidding to be fierce

  • Govt submits amended NSP in SC, Sun TV Red FM case adjourned

    MUMBAI: The apex court of India has adjourned Rajya Sabha MP Subramanian Swamy’s plea on national security that challenged Sun TV being allowed to participate in FM Radio auction.

    SC has asked  the central government to give Swamy the amended National Security Policy (NSP) in a week. Swamy had sought cancellation of Phase-3 licence granted to Sun TV’s Red FM India. A bench comprising chief justice of India JS Khehar and Justice DY Chandrachud directed the government counsel to provide Swamy the new NSP.

    Swamy had stated in the plea that ministry of information and broadcasting (MIB) had, despite the opposition of home ministry, favoured Sun TV by allowing it to participate in FM Radio auction citing CBI and Enforcement Directorate cases against the main Sun TV promoter Kalanithi Maran in Aircel-Maxis case, Indian Legal Alive reported.

    Swamy has filed a petition seeking consistent and uniform policy on national security. It contented that national security should be bereft from arbitrariness. At the same time, he said it should not be contradictory in nature.

    On 7 July, additional solicitor-general Rana Mukherjee filed in the apex court in a sealed cover a revised policy on national security. Swamy submitted a letter written by union minister Arun Jaitley and former attorney-general of India to the government.

    The court read those letters and asked the government to provide Swamy a copy of the revised policy. The court will resume the hearing the case after a week.

    Questioning the maintainability of Swamy’s petition, the government counsel also said the NSP was framed in June 2015, and amended in December 2015, Live Law reported.

    According to the Constitution, Swamy argued, only the home ministry had the power to take a decision on national security and the MIB should not interfere. He alleged that the MIB’s decisions were arbitrary and the licence to any TV or radio should be cancelled on grounds of national security.

    Also Read :

    Delhi HC rules in favour of Sun TV chief Maran

    Saregama & Kumkum Bhagya prop Zee TV to third place across genres

    Amagi to provide ad solutions to Sun TV Network

  • Swamy demands President’s rule as Times Now exposes ISI funding stone-pelters via Hurriyat

    MUMBAI: Times Now, one of the leading English news channels last Saturday (6 May) had revealed the funding nexus between Pakistan intelligence agency ISI and Hurriyat leaders to keep alive the separatist movement in Jammu & Kashmir, a Times release stated.

    BJP MP Subramanian Swamy, reacting to the expose, has demanded for President’s rule in Kashmir. “We need immediate President’s rule in Kashmir,” said Subramanian Swamy, BJP MP, in reaction to the story.

    There are a slew of documents that have been accessed by Times Now, showing the nexus between Pakistan and the separatist leaders responsible for radicalising the youth in Jammu and Kashmir, the release added.

    The historic revelation has taken the political establishment by surprise. The Prime Minister’s Office taking note of the expose has asked for a close watch to be kept of financial activities of businessman associated with Kashmiri separatist, the release added.

    Times Now editor in chief Rahul Shivshankar said, “The #PakistanKeDalal story kept viewers glued to their screens and Twitterati busy all day. The story trended for over eight hours and generated cumulative reach that was over four times that of any other news channel.”

    The expose showed how Pakistan’s intelligence agency ISI has routed Rs 70 lakh or more to stone-pelters in Jammu and Kashmir through Hurriyat leader Shabir Shah, the release added.

    It has also been revealed that an ISI man named Ahmad Sagar was constantly in touch with Shah, who belongs to the Hurriyat in Srinagar. As per information available with Times Now, Pakistan ISI channeled the money to Sagar, who then transferred it to Shah, the main accused in this story. Surprisingly, Sagar is known to be a close to Pakistan high commissioner to India Abdul Basit, the release added.

    The investigation by Times Now establishes that Pakistan has not only been promoting cross-border terrorism, but also funding internal separatists in India to promulgate their ‘Azaadi movement”.

    The ‘Nation’s Darkest Secret – Pakistan Ke Dalal’ mega expose on TIMES NOW created ripples over social media through the weekend. #PakistanKeDalal trended in India for over 8 hours on 6th May with #ISIAgentHurriyat, #ISIAgentBurhan, #Suparijihadi etc keeping the Twitteratti buzzing. These conversations garnered a worldwide reach of 2384 million on Twitter. {Source: https://frrole.ai/scout (Data for 6 & 7 May 2017)}

  • Depute law officer to probe NDTV tax case, Swamy urges FM

    MUMBAI: Rajya Sabha MP Subramanian Swamy has recommended through his Twitter handle that the finance ministry should field a Law Officer with the integrity to challenge NDTV’s income tax case of Rs.525 cr failing which it would have to face protest by him (Swamy.

    Earlier, NDTV published what it calls a ‘statement of facts’ on income tax case. NDTV states: This entire issue relates to a blatantly false case. In 2008, GE (USA) invested $150 million in NDTV through their media subsidiary NBC (USA).

    Six years later, in 2014, the Income Tax Department of India – without any evidence at all – called this investment a “sham transaction”, thereby accusing GE and NBC of being “fronts” or “name-lenders” for “money-laundering”. The Income Tax Department is in effect accusing the CEOs of GE and NBC of a crime for which, under US law, they will go to jail, if convicted. The CEOs involved in the deal are Jeff Immelt (CEO of GE who has met PM Modi on several occasions, including recently) and Jeff Zucker (former CEO of NBC and now President of CNN).

    This behaviour by the IT department is damaging for India and deeply harms the reputation of our country internationally at a time when we are trying to pitch India as an ideal place to do business, NDTV stated.

    For the Income Tax Department to call some of the world’s most respected business leader like Immelt and Zucker ‘money launderers’ amounts to what is widely known as “Tax Terrorism”. On this accusation, NDTV is being continuously harassed as part of a concerted effort to silence an Indian media house that has always stood and fought for independent journalism – despite repeated threats and intimidation.

    NDTV has appealed against the case. It has not been heard for two-and-a-half years as the income tax authorities have asked for no less than 20 adjournments. Since the first hearing, NDTV has not asked for a single adjournment. It suits the tax department to have this case drag on since it has no evidence of its wild and unsubstantiated allegations. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has clearly told the Delhi High Court that while complaints against NDTV have been received, the allegations were not supported by even prima facie material, NDTV stated.