'Hope justice will prevail': I&B ministry bars transmission of Malayalam news channel MediaOne

Malayalam news channel MediaOne TV went off air today after its transmission was allegedly blocked by the ministry of information and broadcasting.

A statement on Twitter issued by Pramod Raman, editor of MediaOne, said the ministry had cited "security reasons" to "block" its transmission.

"The central government is unwilling to share the details of that," the statement said. "MediaOne has initiated legal steps against this order. Once that is completed, MediaOne will be available again for its viewers. With the hope that justice will prevail, we are temporarily stopping our transmission."

Indian Express quoted "channel sources" as saying that the channel's licence "has not expired but the process of renewal of the licence of the channel was on when the ban came".

In March 2020, soon after the Delhi riots, MediaOne had been temporarily prohibited from telecasting for being "critical towards Delhi police and RSS". The ban was lifted after the government faced widespread criticism.

At the time, the order banning MediaOne had read: "Channel’s reporting on Delhi violence seems to be biased as it is deliberately focusing on the vandalism of CAA supporters. It also questions RSS and alleges Delhi Police inaction. Channel seems to be critical towards Delhi Police and RSS..."