Why NBDSA Imposed Fine On 3 TV Channels?

The News Broadcasting and Digital Standards Authority (NBDSA) has imposed penalties on several television channels and mandated the removal of specific programs from their websites, citing their propagation of hatred and communal disharmony, deeming them "inappropriate."

Responding to complaints filed by activist Indrajeet Ghorpade, the self-regulatory body imposed Rs 1 lakh fine on TimesNow Navbharat and News18 India Rs 50,000 for their coverage of 'love jihad', popular used by right-wing activists to insinuate a conspiracy wherein Muslim men allegedly entice Hindu women into marriage with the aim of converting them.

It has also warned Aaj Tak for its coverage of violence on Ram Navami targeting a particular community.

The directives issued by NBDSA Chairman Justice (Retd) A K Sikri instructed the three channels to remove the online editions of the programs within a seven-day timeframe.

In its official statement, NBDSA emphasized the need for careful consideration when using the term 'love jihad,' noting that religious stereotyping violates the Code of Ethics and has the potential to undermine the country's secular ethos.

The NBDSA said that such reportage "cause(s) irreparable harm to a community and create(s) religious intolerance or disharmony", it added.

In response to a complaint lodged by Youth Congress chief Srinivas BV, NBDSA cautioned Aaj Tak for broadcasting a "fictional video" portraying a robber in its coverage of the conviction of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in the "Modi surname" case.

The regulatory authority advised the broadcaster to exercise caution when incorporating such videos into its broadcasts and instructed it to delete the video in question from the program discussing Gandhi's conviction on its website and YouTube channel.

The NBDSA, in another order, slapped a fine of Rs 75,000 on Aaj Tak for a programme on a statement made by former US president Barack Obama on minorities in India.

NBDSA denounced the report linking Obama's statement with Khalistani separatists as a significant distortion, breaching principles of objectivity and neutrality.