Kashmir cable operators resume beaming of channels; federal govt denies any ban

SRINAGAR — Cable TV operators in Kashmir Valley have resumed beaming of Indian and international channels after a two-day blackout even as federal I&B ministry denied it had issued ban order on Pakistani channels. The cable operators had stopped airing of TV channel programmes in protest against the ban order by the state authorities.
“We’ve resumed work for the sake of our subscribers as they were being denied access to the only source of entertainment available in the Valley which is cable television,” said Irfan Bakshi who holds rights of cable TV network in Kashmir Valley. With the outbreak of violence in 1989 all cinema houses, theatres and other sources of entertainment in the Valley were shut down in response to a diktat issued by the separatists.
“In fact, we were over the past two days virtually swamped by telephone calls from our subscribers asking to resume our operations. They were upset, particularly because they could not watch Indian Premier League matches on television,” Irfan said adding “We had no option but to call off our strike.”
Amidst the outcry following the ban on channels, the federal I&B Ministry stepped in strongly denying it had issued any ban order. The ministry sought to clarify that it had written besides Jammu and Kashmir to two other states — Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra — asking them to check the illegal down-linking of TV channels by cable operators in their respective states. The advisories to all three states were issued after it came to the notice of the ministry that “several channels, which have neither applied for nor received permission for down-linking under the policy guidelines for down-linking of TV channels, are being received and distributed by cable television networks in certain states” in violation of the relevant rules.
But Irfan asked: “If the channels we have been asked to black out, have not been issued down-linking permission why then no such ban order was issued elsewhere and not even in Jammu, the winter capital of our state?” He added: “That is why I had said earlier that it (ban) seems to be politically motivated.”