Minister responds to cable channel dispute, cites technical reasons.
Tamil Nadu: Tamil Nadu School Education Minister A. Rajmohan has given clarification on the questions raised regarding the telecast of some television channels on the government cable network. He clarified that the government is not making any attempt to suppress the freedom of expression of the media and this matter is purely related to technical reasons.
After an event organized at Chennai Corporation’s Rippon Building Complex on Wednesday, Minister A. Rajmohan spoke to journalists. This program was organized to give incentive amount to the students who had performed well in the recent elections. Meanwhile, while talking to the media, he responded to the complaints related to cable broadcasting.
The minister said that he had received complaints that certain television channels were not visible on the government cable network in Tamil Nadu. After investigating the matter, it was found that due to technical glitches in some areas, the telecast of three particular news channels has been affected. He said that this was not an intentional action, but it happened due to a technical problem.
He also said that steps are being taken by the concerned department to fix this problem and soon the broadcast of all the affected channels will be normalized. According to the minister, there is no favoritism of any kind from the government and all the channels are being broadcast equally.
A. Rajmohan also rejected allegations of government action against television channels run by opposition parties. He said that the channels which are criticizing the government are also being shown on the government cable network without any discrimination. Therefore, it is wrong to say that any channel has been stopped to suppress freedom of expression.
The minister stressed that this entire matter is related to a technical glitch and it is not appropriate to give it a political colour. He said that the government treats all media institutions equally and respects freedom of expression.
He also assured that the concerned department is looking into the problem seriously and soon the broadcasting of all the channels will be normalized by making technical improvements.
After this statement, the discussion has intensified in political circles, although the government has described it as a purely technical issue.
