New Delhi: After the Election Commission (EC), on Wednesday, sought details of “Namo TV” from the Information and Broadcasting (I&B) Ministry based on complaints filed by the Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), DTH service provider Tata Sky has clarified that the channel is “not a Hindi news service”.
It can be recalled that the channel, launched last week, uses the (political) initials of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and is devoted to coverage of his rallies and speeches. Both Modi and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) have promoted Namo TV on social media. So far, the ownership and funding of the channel have not yet been revealed.
The channel also uses the PM’s image as its logo and has been airing, on several DTH and cable TV platforms, his speeches and interviews of various BJP leaders.
After launching the channel on March 31, Tata Sky revealed in a series of tweets, that it “is added to all subscribers as a launch offer” and there is “no option to delete the individual channel”.
An intense debate soon began on social media, after Tata Sky tweeted that NaMo TV is a “Hindi news service which provides the latest breaking news on national politics”. After the fallout, the service provider, on Thursday, clarified that the channel is “not a Hindi news service”, but a special service on the internet, not requiring a government license.
Speaking to NDTV Harit Nagpal, the CEO of the DTH service provider said that “it is a mistake” if anyone at Tata Sky tweeted or said that the channel is a “news service”.
Justifying that special services do not require a license, he said that the channel falls under no specific genre and that the feed comes straight from the BJP through the internet.
Regarding the issue, sources at the I&B ministry have said that the channel is an “advertising platform” and is “not a normal channel” and therefore, does not require approval. They added that the channel does not show on the official list of approved channels and is not on the list of permitted private satellite TV channels on the ministry’s site.
Meanwhile, the Congress has moved the EC seeking strictures against Modi and the BJP for promoting “Namo TV” as “a political tool” when the model code of conduct (MCC) is in force and using the government-owned Doordarshan for their election campaign.
It also urged the EC to issue “urgent and necessary directions” to the I&B Ministry and DTH service providers to take action against the channel.
The AAP also filed a complaint with the EC stating if permission can be given to a party to have own TV channel when the poll code of conduct was in force.
With inputs from IANS
