| MUMBAI:
The Madras High Court (HC) has issued notices to the Information and Broadcasting
Ministry, Prasar Bharati and the Central Board of Film Certification on the issue
of transmission of obscenity, violence, vulgar telecasts and exhibition of indecent
dramas, serials, dances and advertisements by private channels. Hearing
on a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by Rev Father Pancras M Raja along
with three others, the first bench of chief justice HL Gokhale and justice D Murugesan,
have asked the parties to file the responses by 5 October. In
the PIL, the petitioners have sought order to restrain repeated telecast of events
which terrified viewers. These include the 26/11 terror attack in Mumbai and the
19 February police-advocates clash in the Madras High Court premises. According
to the petitioners, youth and children were being exposed to 'mind pollution'
by the TV programmes and advertisements telecast by the satellite cable TV networks.
Contending that mind pollution was worse than all other types of pollution, the
petitioners claimed that psychologists all over the world have been cautioning
that exposure to media violence and sex had a damaging impact on children, minors
and youth. The
case will come up for hearing on 5 October. | 
