On the day that the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill was passed in the Rajya Sabha, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting issued an interesting advisory to private satellite television channels forbidding them from broadcasting “anti-national” content.
The advisory says, “…all TV channels are advised to be particularly cautious with regard to any content which is likely to encourage or incite violence or contains anything against maintenance of law and order or which promotes anti-national attitudes.”
Given that the term “anti-national” is open to interpretation, it is curious that it was used in official government communication in the first place. The letter therefore appears more like an indirect and rather devious attempt at censorship, rather than a professionally drafted official advisory. The entire advisory may be read here:
