Court concludes hearings regarding ban on airing interviews of convicts

Civil Court has concluded hearings regarding RaajjeTV’s case to appeal the broadcasting commission’s ban on airing interviews of detainees and convicts.

At the hearings, the broadcasting commission’s legal representative argued that the ban is in line with the commission’s regulations and Islamic tenets, but did not detail how the ban is linked to religious principles.

RaajjeTV’s attorney Nishan Ibrahim said that airing interviews of prisoners does not violate any broadcasting regulation or Islamic law. The commission’s ban has violated articles 27, 28, 29, 68, and 69 of the Constitution, Nishan said, citing article 208 which states that any regulation that contradicts the Constitution is invalid.

A press statement publicized by the broadcasting commission in May states that information received from prisoners can only be aired if it was gained after going through the set legal procedures. It also cited the parole act as saying that prisoners are no longer recognized as a political leader and so their interviews cannot be aired either.

RaajjeTV has also filed court cases regarding the various fines imposed by the broadcasting commission, totaling MVR 3.7 million.