Union Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting, Prakash Javadekar said that the Centre had taken serious note of blocking two Telugu channels the MSO after the dissemination of objectionable content against legislators. However, media persons have been asked to await the decision of the Centre in the matter until the completion of the by-election Medak parliamentary election on Saturday.
Responding to a question at a press conference on Thursday, Mr. Javadekar said the Centre after two days will see what action can be taken "properly and legally" against multiple system operators (MSO) for breach of the order of the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal, which had requested the resumption of programs on channels within an hour. The channels were promptly restored the programs in the order but stopped airing in two hours. "We're in the middle of the election and have to focus on that now," Mr. Javadekar said.
He warned that press freedom comes responsibility. The Government is obliged to protect the freedom of the press if you enjoy responsibly.
He also said that press freedom was the soul of democracy. No one can play with it because it is essential for the success of a democracy ingredient. He said the government would not allow anyone to cause havoc with press freedom. From the time of the British Raj when Lokmanya Tilak was put behind bars for writing against the government, people have suffered similar writings. But that suffering brought true freedom to the press. The abuse of press freedom was also observed during the emergency in 1975, when several people went to jail.
The Minister explained the comments of K. Chandrasekhar Rao Prime Minister against the media at a public meeting in Warangal two days ago, but he did not answer, saying that he had not heard.