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Find middle path on DTH issue, says Delhi HC

''There were many benefits of foreign satellite channels... If such information can be made available to the people of the country, it will only benefit us. Why should we deny ourselves such benefit?" That was the Delhi high court on the issue of direct-to-home transmission.

The court asked the central government and cable operators to find a middle path so that the positive aspects of DTH telecast are retained while checking its negative role.

A division bench, consisting of Justice A B Saharya and Justice J B Goel said there was no harm in giving exposure to the public about the positive aspects of the western society if the negative aspects were excised.

The judges gave the respondents till September 29 to file the suggestion.

The court was hearing a public interest petition filed by M's News Television (India) Ltd, which had challenged the July 17 government notification banning DTH telecast.

Under the notification, the government had promulgated the new Radio, Television and Video Cassette Recorder Sets (exemption from licensing requirements) Rules, 1997, updating the act of 1985, issued under sections four and seven of the Indian Telegraph Act, 1985 and sections four and 10 of the Indian Wireless Telegraph Act, 1933.

The government had argued that by allowing the channels through Ku-band, the security of the country would be affected.

The government had said, ''No sovereign country can allow offshore television network, over which it had no control to transmit its programme unhindered in the country."

However, the petitioner asked how could the security of the country be affected by channels on the Ku-band when already so many foreign satellite networks were operating in the country on the C-band.

In its petition, News Television (India) said the notification was a complete abrogation of their right to carry on their business in the Ku-band frequency services. The restrictions were neither reasonable nor in public interest, it said.

EARLIER REPORTS:
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