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NEW DELHI: The I&B ministry has asked the ministry of home affairs to review security clearance to a clutch of TV channels run by the Saradha Group. This is an initial step towards cancellation of their license. The ministry had issued a notice to the Group recently seeking an explanation as to why its license should not be cancelled in view of violations of uplinking and downlinking guidelines.
Speaking on the issue, I&B secretary U K Varma said, "We have asked the MHA to review the security clearance given to channels run by the Saradha group. Appropriate action will be taken once we receive the report.'' The channel has been given 15 days to clarify its stand in view of the violations.
The ministry is likely to cancel the group's license if it finds that there have been changes in the shareholding pattern without keeping them in the loop. Before its collapse, the Group ran channels including Tara Muzik, Tara Newz and South Asia TV besides newspapers such as Sakalbela in Bengali, Prabhat Varta in Hindi, Bengal Post and Seven Sisters Post in English and Kalom and Azad Hind in Urdu, which are all shut now.
The group also ran a Bengali weekly magazine, Paroma. The media outlets have all shut down since the Saradha scam surfaced. The West Bengal government recently announced that it planned to take over the channels in order to provide relief to the employees.
Saradha group was found by authorities to have duped lakhs of chit fund investors of an amount close to Rs 1,500 crore. The I&B ministry had also sought last month details from all channels to disclose changes, if any, in their shareholding pattern or ownership. There are about 830 registered TV channels run by about 300 companies.
http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-06-04/india/39740062_1_saradha-group-ib-ministry-tara-muzik
.
Speaking on the issue, I&B secretary U K Varma said, "We have asked the MHA to review the security clearance given to channels run by the Saradha group. Appropriate action will be taken once we receive the report.'' The channel has been given 15 days to clarify its stand in view of the violations.
The ministry is likely to cancel the group's license if it finds that there have been changes in the shareholding pattern without keeping them in the loop. Before its collapse, the Group ran channels including Tara Muzik, Tara Newz and South Asia TV besides newspapers such as Sakalbela in Bengali, Prabhat Varta in Hindi, Bengal Post and Seven Sisters Post in English and Kalom and Azad Hind in Urdu, which are all shut now.
The group also ran a Bengali weekly magazine, Paroma. The media outlets have all shut down since the Saradha scam surfaced. The West Bengal government recently announced that it planned to take over the channels in order to provide relief to the employees.
Saradha group was found by authorities to have duped lakhs of chit fund investors of an amount close to Rs 1,500 crore. The I&B ministry had also sought last month details from all channels to disclose changes, if any, in their shareholding pattern or ownership. There are about 830 registered TV channels run by about 300 companies.
http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2013-06-04/india/39740062_1_saradha-group-ib-ministry-tara-muzik
.
