New Delhi: The Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal has ordered immediate restoration of transmission of the Telugu news channel TV9 in Telangana after the chief secretary asked the state DGP to ensure protection to the multi-system operators who provide signals.
In its order on Wednesday, the Tribunal said that Telangana’s additional solicitor general Ramachandra Rao had informed it of the steps taken by the state to provide full protection to the MSOs who should resume the broadcast of the channel.
Then, the additional advocate general of Telangana state J Ramachandra Rao said they would provide security to the MSOs in case there is any threat of violence as long as the channel did not violate any law or indulged in making any defamatory references to the state of Telangana or its people or government.
The MSOs had submitted that if the state government issued a public notice or a press release warning against any use of violence against any MSO for broadcasting the channel, they would be able to resume the broadcast of the petitioner’s channel without any apprehension of violence.
The tribunal also asked the petitioner (the TV channel) and MSOs to give wide publicity to this order through newspapers and electronic media which would allay the misgivings of the MSOs and MSOs would then be in a position to air the channel.
The MSOs should also intimate the DGP and the Commissioner of Police, in regard to the when they would resume broadcast of the channel, and added that they should resume broadcast of the channel in a week.
