Central ban on Media One channel draws flak

Pinarayi, Satheesan condemn it as an attempt shackle media

The unexplained ban imposed by the Union Information and Broadcasting Ministry on Malayalam news channel Media One drew flak from various quarters.

The Communist Party of India (Marxist) State secretariat issued a statement condemning the ban, calling it as part of the attempts by the Centre to shackle the media. Protesting against the move, the party said the Centre was trying to make each media outlet fall in line.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said freedom of expression and speech formed part of the fundamental rights guaranteed by the Constitution. There should be diverse opinions in the public sphere in the absence of which democracy would be in peril. Society, he said, should be vigilant against such a danger. There did not seem to have been any explanation on why the functioning of the news channel was blocked. If there were serious issues, they should be examined separately and resolved through Constitutional means.