Denied 'security clearance', Kolkata TV gets show cause notice threatening to cancel its license

The information and broadcasting ministry has sent Kolkata TV a show cause notice asking the news channel to respond in seven days as to why its license should not be cancelled.

According to the Wire, the notice said that due to "denial of fresh security clearance, the permission to uplink and downlink the TV channel Kolkata TV, teleport at Kolkata and DSNG vans cannot be renewed."

The "security clearance" had allegedly been denied by the home ministry in a letter to Kolkata TV dated September 27.

The Wire noted that Kolkata TV is "known for its critical stance" on the Narendra Modi government and "sympathetic" towards the Mamata Banerjee government in West Bengal.

The channel's owner Kaustav Roy told the Wire that the show-cause notice is a "blatant way to gag the voice of free press". "We will continue to raise our voice, we will protest against this fascist undemocratic regime of Mr Modi," Roy said. "We will not succumb to any such pressure. We hope the democratic people of this country and the democratic political parties will support our struggle."

Roy had been the subject of raids by the Enforcement Directorate in 2018; he also received a notice from the ED earlier this month. He was also arrested by the CBI in 2018 in connection with a "bank fraud" case. Roy told the Wire that the CBI and ED had "failed to silence us" and now, "they want to shut down the entire channel".