The Supreme Court on Wednesday, March 15, stayed the Union government’s order revoking the security clearance for Malayalam news channel MediaOne TV. The channel, owned by Madhyamam Broadcasting Limited, was taken off air by the Union government and its telecast was banned on security grounds. The Supreme Court said that the channel will be allowed to run as it did before its security clearance was revoked. The court has sought a counter affidavit from the Union government to be filed within two weeks, before March 26, and said that this can be done in a sealed cover.
Senior advocate Dushyant Dave, appearing for the Madhyamam group, contended that security clearance for renewal of licences is not required, and said that the government’s decision to shut down the channel was due to the fact that it was owned by Muslim individuals. Many investors of Madhyamam Broadcasting Limited are members of the Kerala chapter of Jamaat-e-Islami. Justice DY Chandrachud asked SV Raju, appearing for the Union government, to disclose the intelligence reports on the basis of which the channel’s security licence was cancelled. “You are denying someone to run their business. What is the issue?” the court asked. To this, Dushyant Dave replied that according to the Kerala High Court, nothing was on record. The bench then replied that it is “averse to sealed cover jurisprudence”.
MediaOne TV had moved the Supreme Court against the Kerala High Court’s order upholding the Union government’s decision to ban its telecast on security grounds. Earlier, the Supreme Court had sought a response from the Union government, asking it to submit the documents that the Kerala HC relied on for its judgment.
The Kerala High Court, on March 2, upheld the single-judge order to ban Malayalam news channel MediaOne TV. A bench of Chief Justice S Manikumar and Justice Chaly dismissed the news channel’s appeal against the Union government’s decision to stop its telecast by not renewing its licence. The channel went off air on January 31 after its licence was not renewed by the Information & Broadcasting (I&B) Ministry.