48-hour ban on two Malayalam TV channels for coverage on Delhi riots

The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has barred two Malayalam TV channels for their 'coverage of the Delhi riots' that has claimed 53 lives. Asianet News and MediaOne were taken off air at 7.30 pm on Friday and will remain so till 7.30 pm on March 8, reports said.

The action against the two channels has been taken under the Cable Television Networks Rules, 1994.

According to The News Minute, the ministry has alleged that the coverage was provocative, could have incited violence, were biased and critical of the RSS and Delhi police, sided with a particular community and showed those who supported the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) in poor light.

“It appeared that the telecast of the reports on North-East Delhi violence had been shown in a manner that highlighted the attack on places of worship and siding towards a particular community. The channel's reporting on Delhi violence seems to be biased as it is deliberately focusing on the vandalism of CAA supporters. It also questions RSS and alleges Delhi Police inaction. The channel seems to be critical towards Delhi Police and RSS,” the I&B Ministry's order against MediaOne said.

The channel's bulletin about the anti-Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) protesters being injured and police’s refusal to visit the spot invited the action by the government, the TNM report said.

MediaOne's claim that Delhi Police remained inactive during the violence, and accusations on cops vandalising shops and fruit carts also did not sit well with the government.

“The channel also reported that violence took place mostly in Muslim dominated area of Chand Bagh, Delhi. While telecasting the news, the channel carried the news of stone pelting, arson and injured people being taken to hospital,” the order said.

Asianet News's coverage of violence in Jaffrabad during which Delhi police remained "mute spectators" led to the temporary ban. The TV channel's report that claimed that rioters attacked houses of Muslims in Hindu majority areas and fired at each other with slogans of 'Jai Sri Ram' and 'Azadi' in the air led to the government action.

The coverage could have "incited violence and posed danger to maintenance of law and order situation, particularly when the situation is already highly volatile and charged up and riots are taking place in the area."

This report had been shown in a manner that highlighted the attack on places of worship and siding towards a particular community. It said the reporter alleged that central troops had not arrived and that he had witnessed the attacks on Muslims, the order said. The reporter had also said that rioters had asked which religion he belonged to, the ministry alleged.

"While reporting such critical incidents, the channel (Asianet News T/) should have taken utmost care and should have reported it in a balanced way. Such reporting could enhance the communal disharmony across the country when the situation is highly volatile," the order said.

The massive violence in the national capital last week started even as US President Donald Trump was on a visit to Delhi. While officials have claimed that communal violence in northeast Delhi has claimed 44 lives, an accumulation of data from different hospitals has shown that 53 people died in the riots.