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| Massive public pressure forces Govt to restore channels | | | • JK, Take 1 Channels blocked in morning by Police
• Thousands defied curfew to support channels
• Police fired at mob injuring many including cops
• Senior journalist Ashwani Kumar seriously injured
• Entire attention of town shifted ob blockage of channels
• May people, organizations terms move as ‘emergency’
• Channels restored in evening after huge public pressure
Jammu, Aug 3: Earning widespread public condemnation, in an unprecedented early morning swoop the Police on orders of district administration “sealed off” the offices of two local cable television networks and prohibited the transmission of all television channels available in Jammu.
However, the orders were rescinded late in the evening after massive protests from the public. Thousands of people defied curfew restrictions and gathered at Digiana, outside the office of JK Channel following which the district administration withdrew its order of morning which had prohibited telecast by these channels.
The District Magistrate, Jammu, Dr Mandeep K Bhandari, said that he has rescinded this evening his earlier order of today prohibiting transmission of news channels of Take-1 and JK Channel cable operators and permitted them to resume the transmission subject to compliance and conformity to the conditions laid down in the Act in letter and spirit. He said that the order was rescinded following the detailed discussions held with the representatives of these channels.
Earlier in the morning, senior journalist Ashwani Kumar, Bureau Chief of Aaj Tak Channel sustained serious injuries in the Police action while covering sealing of JK Channel. Police had fired shells to disperse the mob which had gathered outside premises of the Channel where Ashwani got seriously injured. He was immediately moved to the Government Medical College Hospital where his condition is stated to be critical but stable.
After sealing the offices of JK Channel and ‘Take 1’ Office and prohibition of their networks, thousands of people in Jammu were left wanting for any source of information. Well before the spread of this news across the city, the government also allegedly got the SMS service suspended. An official wishing anonymity said that the SMS service was suspended as it was helping people to spread rumours.
The government decision has earned severest public criticism as many people described the move as an onslaught on freedom of expression. The Bar Association of Jammu has said that it exploring legal options to move court against the government decision.
A heavy posse of Police led by three officers of the rank of Deputy Superintendents of Police swooped on the office of JK Media Network at Digiana taking the channel officials unawares. The Police personnel moved in the channel office and asked for handing over to them the control room equipments.
Within a while of Police reaching the office complex of JK Channel, local people from area and media professionals from various outlets gathered at the venue. While media professionals rushed their for discharge of their professional duties, the local people had gathered in support of the JK Channel. People made desperate attempts to resist the Police action during which a local slapped on the face of a senior Police officer.
Eye witnesses said that one Police officer was caught hold of by the agitated locals and it took long while for the Police to get him rescued. After taking full control of the Channel premises, the cops took away important equipments from their Control Room. No such action was initiated at the office of Take One Channel located at Chhani Himmat where officials were served notice to prohibit telecast of their local programs.
With the blockage of networks of Take One and JK Channels, no national or international channels including the news channels were available for viewing in the town. Both channels did not have a facility of separator and therefore with blockage of local channels all channels supplied by their networks were blocked.
In his prohibition order, the District Magistrate, Jammu, Dr Mandeep K Bhandari said that two teams comprising Police Officers and Executive Magistrates served the orders to the representatives of both the channels in their offices. JK Channel and Take-1 Channel have gone off the air this morning. The orders were meant for the prohibition of news telecast (Channel) only and not for other entertainment channels run by these two cable networks. But they have totally gone off the air on their own and with it all the National Channels have also gone off the air simultaneously as they have the distribution rights of all other national news and entertainment channels.
He said the orders under Cable Networks Act were for the prohibition of only JK Channel and Take-1 News in district Jammu and were never intended at any other channel including entertainment channels telecast by these two networks. The orders of prohibition were made on account of violation of programme code under Section 6 of the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act 1995, whose provisions the channels were found to be violating. The Section 6 prohibits transmission which encourages or incites violence or is against maintenance of law and order. It has been noticed that the Channels repeatedly telecast violent crowds raising provocative slogans at different places, the contents of which are inciting and meant to arouse the passions and regional hatred.
He said that some of the news items transmitted contained the contents which are based on un-confirmed reports, half-truths and suggestive innuendos. This has the potential of provoking and encouraging general public to take recourse to violent acts and arson. Some items are focused on inflammatory content which has been seen to be arousing passions and inciting violence. Programmes like panel discussions, interviews, etc. are telecast without editing to conform to the provisions of Section 5 of the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act 1995 and without even deleting the highly provocative parts of statements made during these programmes. The administration noticed some programmes aimed at glorifying violence in its reporting etc. The channels are found to have taken no precautions at all to avoid criticism/maligning individuals in person, as prohibited under Section 6 (i) of Cable Television Network Rules 1994.
These channels have not been taking care to conform to the provisions of Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act 1995 and to check the veracity of news items and have been displaying them incorrectly without taking into account the fallout of the same on public psyche and subsequent action out of enraged passions.
Dr Bhandari said that a few days ago, he had called the representatives of both the channels and apprised them of the violations of the Act being committed by their programmes and they were advised to conform to the provisions of the Act in the larger public peace.
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