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NEW
DELHI: Red FM has been banned from broadcasting for seven
days with immediate effect following the controversy created
by the remarks of a radio jockey last week about Indian Idol
Prashant Tamang and the people of the Gorkha community. However,
the order remains automatically stayed in view of a direction
by broadcast tribunal TDSAT.
Tribunal
chairman Justice Arun Kumar had yesterday, on a plea by M/s
Digital Radio (Delhi) Broadcasting Limited, which operates
Red FM, ordered that the ministry “will be free to proceed
with the show-cause notice and take whatever decision it feels
proper or necessary in the facts and circumstances of the
case," but held that any order or direction passed would
not be implemented till 4 October, the next date of hearing.
However,
a senior ministry official opined in a chat with indiantelevision.com
that the TDSAT, like the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India,
could only adjudicate on issues related to carriage and not
content and this fact would be raised on 4 October.
The ministry had in its notice to the channel asked it to
show cause by 1600 hrs on 1 October why action should not
be taken against it ‘since it is prima facie evident
that the remarks are in violation of the programme code of
All India Radio’.
In
its reply, the channel is understood to have reproduced a
statement issued by it consequent to the violent situation
created by its broadcast. The statement said: "Red FM
hails Prashant Tamang's victory in Indian Idol and has been
supporting his entire journey right from the start. As soon
as we got to know that a section of the people have misinterpreted
some of the statements in our show as being insulting, we
have proactively cleared our stand. As the leader in the national
FM broadcasting space we are in the business of music and
providing joy to all our listeners. Our shows and RJ's use
humour and satire in their presentation and the popularity
of their shows is there for all to see."
Also
Read:
Red
FM replies to I&B missive, says it has already cleared
the air
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