Writ petition in Bangladesh High Court seeks ban on Indian TV channels

Dhaka, Dec 3 (PTI) A writ petition has been filed in the Bangladesh High Court seeking a ban on the broadcast of all Indian TV channels in the country citing provocative news aired on them, according to a media report.
    Lawyer Ekhlas Uddin Bhuiyan filed the petition and confirmed the matter on Monday, the Dhaka Tribune reported.
    Bhuiyan said a hearing on the application may take place on the High Court bench, which will consist of Justice Fatema Najib and Justice Sikder Mahmudur Razi.
    The writ petition was filed in the High Court seeking a ban on the broadcast of all Indian TV channels in Bangladesh, the report added.
    The writ seeks a directive under Section 29 of the Cable Television Network Operation Act 2006 to prohibit the broadcast of all Indian TV channels.
It also asks why a rule should not be issued instructing a ban on Indian TV channels in Bangladesh.
    The writ calls for a ban on channels like Star Jalsha, Star Plus, Zee Bangla, Republic Bangla, and all other Indian TV channels, the report added.
    The petition alleges that provocative news is being aired on Indian channels and that unregulated broadcasts of content opposing Bangladeshi culture are leading to the destruction of the youth, the report added.
    It further claims that these channels are not adhering to any regulations.
    The secretaries of the Information Ministry and the Home Ministry, the Bangladesh Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (BTRC), and others are named as respondents in the petition.
    The relations between India and Bangladesh came under strain after the interim government headed by Muhammad Yunus came to power following the ouster of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in August.
    India has been expressing concerns over attacks on minorities, especially Hindus, in that country.
    There has been a rise in violent attacks against Hindus in Bangladesh. Hindu minority groups have been frequently reporting atrocities against their community members in different parts of Bangladesh, even after Yunus took charge.
    The diplomatic row erupted between India and Bangladesh after Hindu priest Chinmoy Krishna Das, a former member of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON), was arrested from Dhaka’s Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport on November 25.
    Das, the spokesperson for the Bangladesh Sammilita Sanatani Jagran Jote, was denied bail and sent to jail by the Chattogram’s Sixth Metropolitan Magistrate court in a sedition case on November 26.
     It triggered clashes between his supporters and the security personnel that led to the killing of a lawyer.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)