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HC lifts stay on Sudarshan TV's 'UPSC Jihad' expose show after Modi govt's nod

The show was scheduled to be telecast on August 28. However after the HC stay, the broadcast was postponed

Friday September 11, 2020 7:14 PM, ummid.com with inputs from IANS

New Delhi: Two weeks after temporarily staying the Sudarashan TV's controversial show that the channel claimed will expose "infiltration" of Muslims in India's elite civil services, Delhi High Court on Friday gave it a go ahead.

The show was originally scheduled to be telecast on August 28. However after the HC stay, the broadcast was postponed. Following the Delhi HC verdict, Sudarshan TV announced the telecast of the controversial show today itself.

Delhi High Court refused to extend the stay on the show at "this stage" after the Information and Broadcasting Ministry under the Narendra Modi government said it cannot pre-censor a programme, or stop it from being telecast.

"Non-speaking order"

The ministry was responding to a notice issued by a single judge bench of Justice Navin Chawla on August 28. HC issued notice to the centre while hearing a petition, filed by the students of Jamia Millia Islamia through advocate Shadan Farasat.

During the hearing on the petition today, the petitioners said that the order by the Information and Broadcasting Ministry is a "non-speaking order".

The plea further stated that despite the mandate of law under Sections 5, 19 and 20 of the Cable TV Act and the direction of the court in its order dated August 29, the impugned order fails to make any assessment regarding violation of the Programme Code or Sections 19 or 20 of the Cable TV Act, either with respect to the proposed show or its promo.

"The assessment has simply been abandoned on a statement of Respondents No 2 (Sudarshan News) and 3 (Editor-in-Chief Suresh Chavhanke) that there is no violation of the Programme Code. There is no independent application of mind to the facts and circumstances of the case," the plea said.

"Modi Govt did not assess the contents"

"Respondent No 1 (Centre) did not even deem it fit to initiate the exercise of assessing the contents of the proposed show... It, even cursorily, did not apply its mind to the facts of the case," the petitioners said, adding that there is no application of mind as to why the promo of the proposed show does not indicate that the proposed show will be in violation of the Programme Code and Section 19 of the Cable TV Act.

"In sum and substance, the impugned order is a cryptic and non-speaking order and ought to be set aside, with a direction to Respondent No 1 to re-assess whether the proposed show and its promo violates the Programme Code and Section 19 of the Cable TV Act. Furthermore, till such time this reassessment is completed, the broadcast of the proposed show ought to be stayed," the plea read.

Earlier, Jamia Millia Islamia too had written to the Union Education Ministry seeking action against Sudarshan TV for the controversial TV show.

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