MAM
Day 3 of TDSAT ad cap hearings
MUMBAI: The queue of channels waiting their turn to present their individual cases on the so-called crippling TRAI 12 minute ad cap to the Telecom Disputes Settlement Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) has not really got any shorter even as the hearings got into the third day. The reason: the News Broadcasters Association’s (NBA) lawyers continued with their arguments in the presence of TDSAT’s Justice Aftab Alam and member Kuldeep Singh.
And with their presentation referencing statutory laws as relating to the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act and the TRAI Act 1997 completed they have now progressed to bringing in references about media freedom as written in the Article 19A of the Indian Constitution.
The NBA counsel referred to the ‘Sakal Papers And Others vs The Union Of India on 25 September, 1961’ case. The Supreme Court had then affirmed that a newspaper should have the liberty to carry as many advertisements as it would want to because ‘curtailment of advertising is a curtailment of free speech as guaranteed by the Constitution of India.
The declaration of this case reads: ‘the state could not make a law which directly restricted one guaranteed freedom for securing the better enjoyment of another freedom. Freedom of speech could not be restricted for the purpose of regulating the commercial aspect of the activities of newspapers.’
According to the NBA, since such a ruling exists for print newspapers, it should also apply to the broadcast medium. However, Alam tended to disagree and opined that that the electronic medium is different from print.
The NBA also contended that broadcasters don’t actually get a ‘license’ from the central government under The Telegraph Act 1885 but rather a ‘registration’ under the uplinking/downlinking policy guidelines. However, the justice doubted that the broadcasters don’t get a licence, and he also felt that broadcasters don’t come under the cable TV act as the NBA is claiming.
During the 12 November hearing, the NBA had argued that TRAI had not done the laying requirements as per section 37 of the TRAI Act which it should have in order to carry out enforcement of ad cap and prosecution of erring channels.
The hearings are slated to continue tomorrow morning with the NBA and its lawyers presenting their arguments. For the other channels, the wait continues.
MUMBAI: The queue of channels waiting their turn to present their individual cases on the so-called crippling TRAI 12 minute ad cap to the Telecom Disputes Settlement Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) has not really got any shorter even as the hearings got into the third day. The reason: the News Broadcasters Association’s (NBA) lawyers continued with their arguments in the presence of TDSAT’s Justice Aftab Alam and member Kuldeep Singh.
And with their presentation referencing statutory laws as relating to the Cable Television Networks (Regulation) Act and the TRAI Act 1997 completed they have now progressed to bringing in references about media freedom as written in the Article 19A of the Indian Constitution.
The NBA counsel referred to the ‘Sakal Papers And Others vs The Union Of India on 25 September, 1961’ case. The Supreme Court had then affirmed that a newspaper should have the liberty to carry as many advertisements as it would want to because ‘curtailment of advertising is a curtailment of free speech as guaranteed by the Constitution of India.
The declaration of this case reads: ‘the state could not make a law which directly restricted one guaranteed freedom for securing the better enjoyment of another freedom. Freedom of speech could not be restricted for the purpose of regulating the commercial aspect of the activities of newspapers.’
According to the NBA, since such a ruling exists for print newspapers, it should also apply to the broadcast medium. However, Alam tended to disagree and opined that that the electronic medium is different from print.
The NBA also contended that broadcasters don’t actually get a ‘license’ from the central government under The Telegraph Act 1885 but rather a ‘registration’ under the uplinking/downlinking policy guidelines. However, the justice doubted that the broadcasters don’t get a licence, and he also felt that broadcasters don’t come under the cable TV act as the NBA is claiming.
During the 12 November hearing, the NBA had argued that TRAI had not done the laying requirements as per section 37 of the TRAI Act which it should have in order to carry out enforcement of ad cap and prosecution of erring channels.
The hearings are slated to continue tomorrow morning with the NBA and its lawyers presenting their arguments. For the other channels, the wait continues.
Brands
Nestlé India names Prateek Tripathi head of IS/IT and business excellence
Analytics veteran brings over two decades of data and governance expertise
GURUGRAM: Nestlé India has appointed Prateek Tripathi as head of IS/IT and Nestlé Business Excellence, effective 1 April, 2026, subject to approvals, the company said in a regulatory filing.
Tripathi will succeed Krishna Guha Roy, who will step down from the role on 31 March, 2026 to take up a larger leadership position within the global Nestlé group.
The company disclosed the development in a filing to stock exchanges under Regulation 30 of the Securities and Exchange Board of India’s Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements.
Tripathi, 45, joined Nestlé in 2019 and currently serves as data governance lead for the Asia, Oceania and Africa zone since February 2025. In this role, he has helped strengthen analytics and data integration capabilities across the South Asia region.
Before joining Nestlé, Tripathi held leadership roles at General Electric, Citibank, Parle Agro and Nielsen, bringing more than 21 years of experience in analytics, data governance and business transformation.
At Nestlé, he began as data analytics manager and played a key role in shaping the company’s data governance framework, driving compliance with internal policies while identifying optimisation opportunities across markets in the Asia-Oceania-Africa zone.
Tripathi holds a bachelor’s degree in mathematics, computer science and statistics from Osmania University and a postgraduate diploma in business management from Goa Institute of Management.
The company said his experience in analytics, governance and digital integration positions him to lead Nestlé India’s IT and business excellence function as the firm scales its technology and data-led initiatives.
