Mumbai: The Kerala high court has issued a two-day stay on the ministry of information and broadcasting (MIB) order revoking the permission for downlinking and uplinking of Malayalam news channel MediaOne.

Madhyamam Broadcasting Ltd which operates the channel MediaOne had applied for renewal of permission on 3 May 2021 was denied security clearance by the ministry of home affairs. In response to a show-cause notice sent by MIB, the company mentioned that they are “unaware of the grounds for denial of security clearance.”

Malayalam channel MediaOne goes off air as MIB revokes permission

According to the MIB order, clause 9.2 of the uplinking guidelines stipulates that security clearance of a company and its directors is a prerequisite condition for grant of permission for TV channels which is up for renewal every ten years.

Subsequently, MediaOne posted a statement on its social media handles stating that it would take legal steps against the MIB order. This is the second time that the MediaOne channel has been barred from airing. In March 2020, Asianet News and MediaOne TV had been barred for 48 hours by MIB citing security concerns.