The Ministry of Information & Broadcasting (MIB) cancelled the licence of 13 TV channels, including eight news and five non-news channels, in January.

The companies whose TV channel licences were cancelled include Triveni Media, Neon Solution, NDTV Ltd, Pompash Fiscal Services and Satlon Enterprise.

The MIB showed the door to Satlon Enterprises’ Gujarati news channel Sandesh News (earlier Satlon News). Sandesh News is owned by Falgun Patel, who is also the main promoter of Gujarati daily Sandesh. Patel is also related to former Gujarat chief minister Chimanbhai Patel.

Incidentally, the MIB’s Inter Ministerial Committee (IMC) had prohibited the transmission or re-transmission of Sandesh News for 30 days on any platform throughout India, from 15 April to 14 May, for violation of programme code of the Cable Television Network Act, 1994.