While freedom of the press, which is an inalienable ingredient of freedom of expression in secular democratic India, is facing severe challenges, and the mainstream media have become almost the megaphones of the government, the Supreme Court has revoked the ban imposed by the Modi administration on the Malayalam news channel MediaOne from January 31, 2022. The order of the Supreme Court should be described as a historic verdict. MediaOne News Channel started broadcasting from Kozhikode on February 10, 2013. When the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting refused to renew the channel's licence without citing any reasons based on the Union Home Department's recommendation, the media organisation and approached the Kerala High Court. Both the Single Bench and the Division Bench of the High Court dismissed the petition of the channel owners only on the basis of the sealed cover submitted by the Central Government. The contents of the sealed envelope were neither communicated to the petitioners nor disclosed in the judgement. The Supreme Court's judgement came out yesterday after a two-judge bench headed by Justice Chandrachud gave sufficient opportunities to the petitioners and the Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to present their arguments on the appeal petition filed by the channel owners Madhyamam Broadcasting Ltd. against the ruthless denial of justice.
Also read: SC highlights the duty of press to speak truth to the state, rejects the sealed cover route
The Court pointed out some very important facts in this judgement which are very significant in the current situation. One: High Court's denial of security clearance to the channel cannot be justified on the basis of the contents of the sealed cover submitted by the Ministry of Home Affairs. The petitioners' right to self-defence is a constitutionally guaranteed right. This has resulted in the denial of the right to renew the licence without convincing the reasons. Two: The state has no power to deny civil liberties merely in the name of national security. The government should be able to convince the court that national security concerns are involved. Reports of investigative agencies like CBI and IB alone cannot be accorded non-disclosure protection. In none of the affidavits filed by the central government in the High Court or the Supreme Court does the government explain how non-disclosure would be in the interest of national security. The National Security Act has become a tool to deny citizens the remedies they are entitled to. Three: News about the Citizenship Amendment Act, the National Register of Citizens, criticism of the judiciary and the state, etc., have been cited by the government to claim that the channel is anti-national. However, none of these forms valid grounds for rejecting the licence renewal application. A free press is vital to the transparent functioning of a democratic republic. A channel cannot be declared anti-establishment just because it criticises government policies. Such expressions represent the desire of the media to support the government. Four: The Ministry's action in denying security clearance to the channel violates the constitutional right to freedom of the press and speech. Five: The alleged association of the shareholders of the channel with Jamaat-e-Islami cannot be a justification to withhold the rights of the channel. Such a relationship has not been factually established either. Jamaat-e-Islami Hind is not a banned organisation. Nor can association with that organisation be alleged to affect the country's sovereignty, integrity, security, or relations with friendly countries.
Also read: Supreme Court lifts telecast ban on MediaOne
In this historic judgement, the Supreme Court bench headed by the Chief Justice has simultaneously emphasised the inviolability of freedom of the press and has also put a brake on the Centre's proclivity to arbitrarily stop and ban anything that is unilaterally branded as harmful to national security. Criticising governments is never treasonous or affects national security. Moreover, the stand that the decisions and policies of the government are beyond criticism, is not compatible with democracy and the Constitution. This attitude is the real reason why independent India is ranked 150th in the world press freedom list today. In any case, all praise to the MediaOne management and its functionaries, who waged a legal battle despite all odds against the prohibition of a government given to a totalitarian tendency and provided an opportunity to redirect the country's entire journey to a healthy path, as also to secular Kerala who supported this struggle wholeheartedly!