There’s an urgent need to hold TV channels and anchors accountable for airing inciting content

Last Friday’s protests over Nupur Sharma’s comments have now been quelled with two people dead in Ranchi and hundreds arrested in Uttar Pradesh for rioting. As always, this incident would also be forgotten and replaced by more contemporary issues. However, it is high time that we as a nation give it a serious thought. It is quite alright to protest, but violence under any pretext can’t be condoned. What is leading to such incidents time and again which are not only detrimental to the bonhomie back home but also maligning the reputation of our country abroad? There could be a debate on who said what and how the other side reacted, but one thing is for sure and that is the media, more specifically the electronic media, should take the blame. The toxic debates which have no other agenda but to instigate and provoke have gone too far. The Government must do something about reining them in. You just cannot overstretch the right to freedom and speech to castigate and hurt others and hide behind the veil of ‘free media’. Whether for TRPs or for hidden agenda, this should not go unpunished.

While two BJP spokespersons were axed and FIRs filed against them, nothing happened to either the anchor or the channel that allowed them to go on with the blasphemous comments. An FIR must be filed against the owner and the anchor and strict action taken to set an example. After all, they should take the blame for the lives lost and the property destroyed. Even the Constitution places several restraints on freedom of speech. It is not absolute. Ideally, it is best left to the media to self-censor its content and not allow venomous content that is hateful, destructive and injurious to national interest. But since it is not happening, there should be clear Government directives against such sinister designs. The Broadcasting Content Complaints Council (BCCC), the independent self-regulatory body for non-news, exists only in name. The Press Council of India, an official body to act as a watchdog for the media, is toothless. We need a constitutional body powerful enough to rein in wayward TV channels, with the power to investigate and punish with fine or licence cancellation. It must be ensured that the media, the fourth pillar, does not misuse its powers to harm our nation.