AMN / WEB DESK
The Supreme Court today April 5 directed the renewal of broadcast permission to Media One channel in four weeks, saying chastising the Centre for imposing a telecast ban by claiming “national security” threats out of “thin air”.
A judgment authored by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud also issued detailed guidelines against the misuse of “sealed cover” by the government.
The CJI held the concept is against both natural justice and open justice and concluded that the Centre’s push to produce intelligence reports in a sealed cover in the High Court and garner an adverse decision against Media One was against natural justice.
The State can’t impose unreasonable restrictions on the press as it would have a “chilling effect” on free press and freedom of the press, the Apex Court noted. “Press has a duty to speak truth to power,” the bench said.
“The critical views of the channel MediaOne on policies of the government cannot be termed anti-establishment. The use of such a terminology in itself represents an expectation that the press must support the establishment,” the Supreme Court said.
In 2020, MediaOne TV was banned for 48 hours after the I&B ministry objected to its coverage of Delhi violence and said it violated the provisions of the Cable Television Network Rules 1994.
In 2022, the channel was taken off air as its license was not renewed. The government cited ‘security’ concerns but did not reveal any details. Many of the investors of the channel are believed to be members of the Kerala chapter of Jamaat-e-Islami, which could be the reason for the ban, reports said.
The channel approached the high court which deferred the operation of the ministry’s ban order. In February 2022, a single-judge upheld the decision of the ministry. It said that some material was handed over to the court in a sealed cover. Those material prove that there is a sufficient reason for the ban.
A division bench also upheld the ban following which the channel approached the Supreme Cour which stayed the ban last year allowing the channel to resume its operation.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday cancelled the ban and also criticised the practice of submitting information to the court in sealed cover. “Sealed cover procedure infringes the principles of natural justice and open justice,” the top court noted.