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 MUMBAI:
Fashion TV (FTV), the risque international channel dedicated
to fashion, has been banned for two months from 1 April, for
"showing programming that goes against good taste and
decency, denigrate women and are likely to adversely affect
public morality".
FTV thus becomes the second channel after Sony's action channel
AXN against which the government has taken such action in
the last few months.
AXN was slapped with a similar ban in mid-January, which
was subsequently lifted 15 days ahead of schedule after the
channel tendered a public apology.
The government ban on AXN was due to objections raised over
a show that used to air on the channel - The World's Sexiest
Advertisements.
The order by the Information and Broadcasting Ministry comes
just under one month after it withdrew the ban on the AXN
channel which had been banned till March 15 but was permitted
to resume transmission into India from 1 March after it submitted
an apology.
The order says, "The transmission or re-transmission
of FTV on all platforms has been prohibited with effect from
April 1 to May 30 throughout the country."
 Ministry
sources said it had come to the notice of the Centre that
some cable operators were transmitting/re-transmitting the
satellite channel “FTV.Com India” which was reportedly
telecasting programmes such as Midnight Hot wherein
skimpily dressed and semi-naked models were shown and this
was against good taste and decency, denigrated women and was
likely to adversely affect public morality.
Therefore, the government prohibited the transmission or re-transmission
of the said channel in the country exercising powers conferred
by Sub-Section (2) of Section 20 of the Cable Television Networks
Regulation Act, 1995.
Earlier, AXN had been banned on 17 January till 15 March for
telecasting programmes like The World’s Sexiest Advertisements
which the Ministry felt "were against good taste
or decency and were likely to adversely affect public morality."
Information and Broadcasting Minister Priyaranjan Dasmunsi
had then said that the government was concerned about the
content being aired on the electronic media and has been taking
suitable action in case of violations of the Cable Television
Network (Regulation) Act 1995.
He had noted that some of the programmes being telecast on
TV on different channels had poor quality content and women
were depicted in a degrading fashion in the advertisements
etc. "We have to be very tough in this regard,"
he had noted. Though he did not name any channels, it is learnt
that they included Zee Café, apart from AXN and FTV.
Earlier this month, the Minister had told Parliament that
a total of 195 show cause notices were issued to television
channels for violations of Programme/Advertising Code prescribed
under the Cable Television Networks
(Regulation) Act 1995, a majority for telecasting obscenity.
The Central government had constituted an Inter-ministerial
Committee under Section 20 of the Cable Television Networks
(Regulation) Act, to look into the violations of the Programme
Code and Advertising Code.
The Committee can examine either suo motu or on receipt of
complaint cases of violation of the Code, and can recommend
action to be taken by the Government. Show cause notices are
issued in the first instance to TV channels for telecasting
objectionable programmes/advertisements in violation of the
codes. Further action
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