Investigate Whether Nirmal Baba’s Programs Encourage Superstition: Allahabad HC To I&B Ministry [Read Judgment]

Lucknow Bench of the High Court of Allahabad on Monday directed the Information and Broadcasting Ministry to look into allegations that programs of self-proclaimed spiritual guru Nirmal Baba, being broadcast on TV channels, encourage superstitions among viewers.

The Bench, comprising Justice A.P. Sahi and Justice Sanjay Harkauli was hearing a Petition filed by Advocate K. Saran, alleging violation of Rule 6 of Cable Television Network Rules, 1994. Mr. Saran had claimed that the program encourages superstition and blind belief, which is a violation of the Programme Code. The telecast, he had submitted, “will cause more public harm than providing any public good”. He had thereby demanded that the program be rescinded.

The Petitioner had further brought to the notice of the Court that the provisions specifically provide that if such channels do not desist from showing contents with superstition and blind faith, the Government may revoke the permission granted for running the channel.

The Court however, noted that several channels that had been stated to be telecasting the program had not been made a party to the Petition. It therefore observed that no direct mandamus can be issued by the Court, as proper and necessary parties were not before it, in spite of the fact that the Petition had been pending since 2012.

Further, during the course of the hearing, a counter affidavit had been filed on behalf of the I&B Ministry, stating that it had referred a complaint against Nirmal Baba to the Secretary General of the News Broadcasters Association, the Broadcast Content Complaint Council and the Advertising Standards Council of India. On enquiry, however, the Ministry could not place any material as to the development of such complaint.

The Petitioner, on the other hand, had argued that broadcasters’ bodies were NGOs and were, therefore, not proper authorities to deal with such a complaint.

In the light of such claims, the Bench directed the I&B ministry to take action into the matter after hearing the concerned operators, channels and other parties.

Read the Judgment here.