Headlines
Don't show live coverage of terror attack: Government to TV channels
New Delhi, July 27
The information and
broadcasting ministry on Monday asked TV channels not to show live
coverage of the ongoing anti-terrorism operations in Dinanagar town of
Gurdaspur district in Punjab and said some channels carried such
telecasts in violation of rules.
The ministry issued an advisory
and said it had notified the Cable Television Networks (Amendment)
Rules, 2015, which state that no programme shall be carried in the cable
service which contains live coverage of anti-terrorist operation by
security forces.
It said the media coverage should be restricted
to periodic briefing by an officer designated by the appropriate
government till such operation concludes.
"It has been brought to
the ministry's notice that during today's (Monday) ongoing
anti-terrorist operations in Gurdaspur, Punjab, some news and current
affairs TV channels carried telecast of these operations without
restricting themselves to periodic briefing by an officer designated by
the appropriate government, though the operations had not been
concluded," the advisory said.
It said such telecast was in
"clear violation" of the cable television networks amendment rules and
was therefore "liable for action".
"They are hereby advised to desist from further violation of the above-said rules with immediate effect," the advisory said.
Information
and broadcasting ministry secretary Bimal Julka told IANS that the
ministry had requested all channels to cooperate with the government on
the sensitive issue.
The ministry had issued a similar advisory in March following a terror strike in Kathua.
"The
Punjab operation not being shown 'live' on @IndiaToday or @aajtak . All
pictures being used as deferred after due diligence and editing,"
senior journalist Rajdeep Sardesai, said in a tweet.
At least six
people were killed and 10 injured when terrorists carried out an attack
in Dinanagar in Gurdaspur district, firing indiscriminately and then
storming a police station.