The media platform took to X, formerly Twitter, to announce YouTube’s decision.

चुनाव के बीच ‘Bolta Hindustan’ पर लगे बैन को हटाया गया, Youtube ने कहा- ‘हमें कुछ भी गलत नहीं मिला’ pic.twitter.com/sdX3YZANfO

— Bolta Hindustan (@BoltaHindustan) May 8, 2024

As per the channel, YouTube has undertaken a review and has now ‘confirmed’ that the channel is not in violation of the platform’s Terms and Service. 

In April, YouTube had informed the platform that they were being removed because the government sent them an order. This action had come just a week before voting for India’s Lok Sabha elections began in April, and therefore began raising allegations of press censorship. However, a month later in May, YouTube has reportedly reinstated the account apologising for any inconvenience caused. In response to the latest move, the platform has stated that they did not deter from following journalistic standards and principles. They took the legal path and asked YouTube to reconsider its decision to ban the channel. 

The founder of Bolta Hindustan, Haseen Rahmani, had spoken to Sabrang India after the ban, classifying the ban as an ‘attack on the messenger.’ citing how people who made hate speech were not being persecuted by those in power, but those who showcased crimes against the marginalised were instead being punished. 

This is however not the only independent news platform that has witnessed a ban in the past six months. Soon after Bolta Hindustan was banned, the central government had reportedly issued a notice to ban the online news platform National Dastak from YouTube. Two other platforms, including Article – 19 on April 3rd and Media Swaraj on February 8 were also banned. It is to be noted that each of these media platforms are independent media platforms that are not owned by corporate houses. They have also been noted for criticisms of the current government and its policies.

In 2023, India witnessed several of its news agencies being bought by corporate giants. Renowned agencies and media houses such as NDTV and IANS saw over 50% of their shares being bought by Gautam Adani. In an India where news channels are being increasingly bought by corporate giants with links to governments, the ban on these channels has brought about charges of infringing on press freedom. These bans have brought out criticism from India’s press unions. Press Club of India criticised the move to ban Bolta Hindustan and National Dastak as an “extreme act of the government.” 

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 Hindustan ko bolne do, says DUJ

The post YouTube reinstates Bolta Hindustan account, cites no wrongdoing after government order appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Speaking to the media, Sappal mentioned the ban on Bolta Hindustan, arguing that free speech should be preserved especially during elections, “It should not be something that is decided by the ministry but by the election commissioner- who was in agreement with us that free speech should always be protected.”

चुनाव आयोग पहुंचा बोलता हिंदुस्तान के यूट्यूब चैनल बैन का मामला

कांग्रेस डेलीगेशन से चुनाव आयोग ने कहा- चुनाव में फ्री स्पीच बरकरार रहेगी @ECISVEEP @SpokespersonECI @YouTube @YouTubeIndia @gurdeepsappal @salman7khurshid @Pawankhera pic.twitter.com/GHOGmbQvwz

— Bolta Hindustan (@BoltaHindustan) April 8, 2024

Sappal took to X, formerly Twitter, to post that a committee including himself, senior members of the Congress such as Jairam Ramesh, Paawan Khera, Salman Khurshid, and Mukul Wasnik had visited the chief election commissioner and submitted a list of complaints. The Congress also raised the complaint against PM Modi comparing the Congress manifesto to the politics of the Muslim League, and the broadcast of the ‘The Kerala Story’ by Doordarshan.

Bolta Hindustan, an independent media platform started in 2015 was hit with a YouTube ban on April 3 after a notice from the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to Google’s legal team. The notice stated that the channel had violated the Information Technology Act 2000 and the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021.

Social media was hit with a huge outcry following the incident, sparking a hashtag #RestoreBoltaHindustanYT.

The team at Bolta Hindustan launched their YouTube channel in 2023 after many financial hurdles. By March 2024, they had garnered nearly 80 million views and amassed 300,000 subscribers. Unfortunately, following the notice from Google on April 3rd, the channel was abruptly shut down the next day. The team at Bolta Hindustan earlier informed Sabrang India that they face censorship frequently. Previously their Instagram account had also been banned a year before, and prior to that their page’s monetizing facility on Facebook was also withheld. The fate of their YouTube channel remains to be seen. The founder of Bolta Hindustan, Haseen Rahmani, earlier told Sabrang India, that they will take the legal route forward if required.

Related:

“The messenger is being punished.” – Bolta Hindustan after YouTube channel ban

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The post Congress approaches Election Commission, raised Bolta Hindustan ban appeared first on SabrangIndia.

Transparency is of the essence in a democracy. The Ministry as well as Google must immediately provide the grounds for the action against Bolta Hindustan. In law it is a basic principle that an accused person or entity must be provided the full reasons for any charges against them.

Two months ago Bolta Hindustan’s Instagram account had been arbitrarily deleted. The Delhi Union of Journalists demands that these accounts be restored.

DUJ notes that such shutdowns of social media channels and handles are becoming frequent. On February 27, 2024 the Facebook account of Article19-India had been restricted. On November 27, 2023 YouTube abruptly terminated the channel Media Star World but restored it after protests. In August 2023 the social media handles of Gaon Savera, a news website that reports on rural India, were blocked under instruction from the government. Journalist Mandeep Punia said the action to block his Facebook and X accounts was probably to stop his extensive coverage of the farmers’agitation. Similarly the website and social media accounts of The Kashmir Walla were witheld in India in August 2023. There are several other instances that smack of arbitrariness.

Meanwhile TV Today has challenged the power of intermediaries to remove a platform user’s access to an account, after the Instagram account of Harper’s Bazaar India was blocked on a third party copyright complaint.

It is evident that the IT Rules, 2021 infringe both citizens’ and organisations’ basic right of free expression.

The Delhi Union of Journalists also regrets that other forms of intimidation are being used against journalists e.g. BJP leader and senior advocate Gaurav Bhatia has filed on April 5, 2024 a defamation suit in the Delhi High Court against YouTubers Navin Kumar of Article-19, Neelu Vyas of News Launcher, Professor Akhil Swamy, BBI News and comedian Rajeev Nigam. The others who Bhatia is suing include some eight X (Twitter) handles, those of Sandeep Singh, Vijay Yadav, Netaflix, Sunita Jadhav, parody account of actor Pankaj Tripathi, Dawood Nadaf, Drkhatra and Virus Baba India Wala.

Bhatia was allegedly roughed up by lawyers at Karkardooma court in Delhi on March 20, 2024 and he demands that all the reports and commentary on the incident be taken down as they are defamatory and damaging to his reputation.

We urge greater tolerance of views and opinions of all shades as long as they do not constitute hate speech or incite violence.

Related:

“The messenger is being punished.” – Bolta Hindustan after YouTube channel ban

The post Hindustan ko bolne do, says DUJ  appeared first on SabrangIndia.

The notice sent on April 3rd states that the Information Technology Act 2000 and the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021 has been violated. Furthermore, the notice is said to be confidential which means that it has not been disclosed why the channel has been banned. As per the channel, the ministry will give the final order soon.

The team at Bolta Hindustan has stated that it was only in 2023 that they could set up a YouTube channel which brought their news to a wider audience and by March 2024, they had accumulated nearly 80 million views and gained 300,000 subscribers, a remarkable number. However, after receiving a notice by Google on April 3, the channel was shut down the following day.

Journalist Samar Raj from Bolta Hindustan has asked whether the content of Bolta Hindustan is more dangerous than the communal environment created by those in power.

बोलता हिंदुस्तान के इंस्टाग्राम अकॉउंट को डिलीट करवाने के बाद, यूट्यूब चैनल को भी बंद करवा दिया गया है।
ईमेल में जवाब आया है-सूचना एवं प्रसारण मंत्रालय ने कहा है।@YouTubeIndia , @Meta और सरकार से सवाल-अभिव्यक्ति की आज़ादी कहाँ है? हमारी सुनवाई के अधिकार कहाँ हैं?: @SamarRaj_ pic.twitter.com/FOmyjXUEsx

— Bolta Hindustan (@BoltaHindustan) April 4, 2024

Interestingly, this is not the first instance of online news platforms being banned recently. On February 8, Sabrang India reported a platform managed by senior journalist Ram Dutt Tripathi named Media Swaraj was banned without any explanation. However, after much public outcry and an appeal, the channel resumed its broadcast on YouTube. Interestingly, YouTube is slated to be the most used source of news for 93 % of Indian internet users.

Haseen Rahmani founder of Bola Hindustan spoke to Sabrang India after the ban, saying “Those who give hate speech are free, but if you do a story on these givers of hate speech, then you are punished.”

He describes the events, “Two days ago, we received a confidential email from the Ministry of Broadcasting via Google’s legal team informing us that our YouTube channel has been banned, they did not tell us why as is routine. Our appeal has also been rejected. Two months ago, our Instagram account was banned, a year before that our Facebook.”

“Currently, we are first seeking clarification from YouTube and subsequently from the Ministry of Broadcasting (PIB). If we do not receive a response, we will only take the legal route forward. Our team is made of alumni from the Indian Institute of Mass Communication (IIMC), and is very familiar with media ethics and boundaries. We do not engage in incendiary content but present the truth. Interestingly, 90% of our channel’s stories are exclusive and not covered elsewhere by mainstream media – perhaps this is why they tried to ban our channel, they don’t want these stories to be shown. Hate speech is circulating freely. However, they will punish those who cover these stories of hate speech. They will punish the messenger.”

Several people on X, formerly Twitter, have written in support of the media portal, using the hashtag #RestoreBoltaHindustanYT.

#RestoreBoltaHindustanYT https://t.co/7Uk6JC1WgB

— Shyam Meera Singh (@ShyamMeeraSingh) April 4, 2024

सोशल मीडिया की सवाल करती हुई आवाज़ों पर पाबंदी लगाने की शुरुआत हो चुकी है. पहले @navinjournalist द्वारा संचालित आर्टिकल 19 के फ़ेसबुक पेज को बंद कर दिया गया, अब @BoltaHindustan के यूट्यूब चैनल को ही बंद कर दिया गया. ये इशारा है. इसके ख़िलाफ़ सभी को आवाज़ बुलंद करनी होगी. pic.twitter.com/4ED9c2pzUL

— Dr. Laxman Yadav (@DrLaxman_Yadav) April 4, 2024

A Hindi news media platform, Bolta Hindustan was reportedly started in 2015 when mainstream media took a nosedive. According to its website, the platform asserts that it is committed to bringing its viewers unbiased news. It was started by media students who wanted to bring to light stories that were ignored in the mainstream media.

From 2015 to 2024, Bolta Hindustan published many crucial stories that were path-breaking such as stories on demonetisation, CAA-NRC, Hathras, COVID-19, migration during the lockdown, mob lynchings, and ongoing hate speech across the country.

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The post “The messenger is being punished.” – Bolta Hindustan after YouTube channel ban appeared first on SabrangIndia.