Chennai Journalists Protest 'Blackout' Of Leading Tamil Channel From State Cable

On Wednesday, journalists in Chennai staged a protest condemning what they called a "blackout" of Puthiya Thalaimurai TV, a leading Tamil news channel, from the state government-run cable network since October 3.

They alleged that the move amounted to censorship, reportedly triggered by the channel's extensive coverage of actor-politician and TVK Chief Vijay's state-wide political tour and the Karur rally tragedy, which claimed 41 lives in a stampede.

Puthiya Thalaimurai's Editor-in-Chief M. Samas said, "We have been receiving complaints from the public that they are unable to watch Puthiya Thalaimurai TV. The channel remains blocked for lakhs of homes."

The issue has quickly taken on a political hue. AIADMK Chief and former Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami denounced the development, saying, "It is highly condemnable to obstruct the fourth pillar of democracy, which brings out truth to the people."

BJP State President K. Annamalai also accused the ruling party of intolerance to criticism, alleging, "The DMK government has blocked Puthiya Thalaimurai TV for pointing out government mistakes over the Karur tragedy. It is highly condemnable."

Media circles note that this is not without precedent. In 2018, during the AIADMK regime, another Tamil channel was blocked after airing an exit poll predicting T.T.V. Dhinakaran's victory in the R.K. Nagar by-election held following Jayalalithaa's death. A few other channels too had faced similar action at the time.

Calling for transparency and accountability, M. Hasif, General Secretary of the Chennai Press Club, said, "Having members from the media industry on the board of state cable operations could bring transparency and prevent such blackouts."

When NDTV contacted senior officials, they denied a blackout. An officer blamed it on "technical glitches". He added, "there is a problem in the standard definition boxes, we have arranged for experts from Norway, and we are hopeful of early resolution."