Banning Comedy Central: The joke is on the government

Editor’s Note: The Ministry of Information has ordered Comedy Central to go off the air for ten days as punishment for telecasting “obscene dialogues and vulgar words” derogatory to women in a programme called ‘Stand Up Club’ and another one called ‘Popcorn’ telecast on 26 May, 2012 and 4 July, 2012 respectively. A review of the ministry’s order in legalese complete with 26 whereas-es inspired this response. The logic of where to use “Whereas” and where to use “WHEREAS” escapes the author and any incorrect use is sincerely regretted. WHEREAS the Information & Broadcasting Ministry issued Show Cause Notice (SCN) on 22.06.2012 to Comedy Central channel for telecast of programmes which appeared to violate Rule 6 (1)(a), Rule 6(1)(d), Rule 6(1)(k), Rule 6(1)(o) and Rule 6(5), the Government has ordered to prohibit the transmission of Comedy Central channel for ten days on any platform throughout India with effect from 00:01 hrs on 25 May, 2013 till 00:01 hrs on 4th June, 2013. [caption id=“attachment_819661” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Comedy Central admitted to an “operational mishap” and offered to apologize for “unintentional genuine error." Image courtesy: Facebook[/caption] Whereas, the entire establishment appear to violate the same provisions of the Cable Television Network Rules, 1994 on an almost daily basis with impunity: i)Rule 6 (1)(a) which provides that no programme should be carried which offends against good taste and decency. Whereas politicians seem to have no ban imposed on them for making speeches in parliament in defense of stalking and casting insinuations about outfits worn by an MP during her days as a Bollywood star. Whereas a prime ministerial aspirant can put a Rs 50 crore price tag on cabinet minister’s wife and a ruling party’s MP can mock an opposition MP for daring to analyse poll results because till recently she just did thumkas on TV proving you don’t need obscene dialogues to be derogatory to women. Whereas much of television is emotional atyachaar anyway routinely offending all good taste and decency with regressive gender politics. Whereas they additionally cause whiplash in viewers by zooming in and out for reaction shots on the face of each and every one of the 17 family members during the soaps. ii)Rule 6 (1)(d) which provides that no programme should be carried which contains anything obscene, defamatory, deliberate, false and suggestive innuendos and half truths which rules out almost every episode of our over-heated shouting-match television talk shows. Whereas all those adjectives can be used routinely to describe Coalgate, 2G scam, Augusta Westland helicopters, Commonwealth Games. Whereas nothing is exempt from scams – whether it’s granite, stamp paper , promotions for railway officials or paddy. Whereas IPL is just the cherry on the whole rotten cake. Whereas hyperactive beeping anyway renders many shows incomprehensible so we don’t know Rachel in Friends made fruit pastry out of beef to the disgust of her diners because beef is verboten on television. Along with penis, vagina, ass and crap. iii)Rule 6(1)(k) which provides that no programme should denigrate women through the depiction in any manner of the figure of women, her form or body or any part thereof in such a way as to have the effect of being indecent, or derogatory to women, or is likely to deprave, corrupt of injure the public morality or morals. Whereas a new Bollywood film has not one but three item numbers, whereas at the IPL 6 final viewers were treated to a cheerleader pouring sponsor drink Pepsi on her chest in slo-mo. Whereas Yo Yo Honey Singh. Whereas the President’s son dismisses anti-rape protests in Delhi as the nautanki of “painted and dented women.” Whereas reality shows turn hanger-ons and good-for-nothings into celebrities, some of whom go on to careers in spot-fixing. Whereas Comedy Central showed crew members making “suggestive movements” with a pair of dummy legs in a shop causing a lady passer by to “give a surprised and amused look” our politicians have been caught watching porn on their phones in the middle of a parliamentary session. Whereas secret CDs of a party spokesman’s bald head bobbing up and down dispiritedly with “suggestive movements” during an extramarital liaison in his office was no “prank” and caused the public to recoil with disgust and nausea rather than mere surprise and amusement. iv)Rule 6 (1)(o) which provides that no programme should be carried which is not suitable for unrestricted public exhibition. Whereas parliament is routinely turning into public exhibitionism unsuitable for public exhibition and children (and the honourable Meira Kumar). Whereas an opposition leader induces paralysis and says “We will not let any bill pass” and a minister propitiates a goat to save his political skin. Whereas the 15th Lok Sabha lost more than 493 hours in its 10 sessions due to backbiting and acrimony. v)Rule 6(5) which provides that programmes unsuitable for children must not be carried in the cable service at times when the largest number of children are viewing. Whereas the Union Ministry of Women and Child Development’s own study says 53% of children encounter sexual abuse. Whereas the Delhi police tell the parents of a five-year-old sexually abused with a bottle and a candle to just go home and forget about it. Whereas Comedy Central is hardly the biggest of our worries in the plight of our children. Whereas Comedy Central has maintained it targets a “niche viewership” while aforementioned busybodies target everyone at large. Whereas Comedy Central admits to an “operational mishap” and offered to apologize for “unintentional genuine error” while aforementioned bodies never apologize or admit to error and make aforesaid statements with deliberate intention. WHEREAS it came to the notice of this correspondent that Comedy Central clearly uses the word Comedy in its title while the government, parliament, political parties, police do not and instead appear to lay down the law as guardians of our public morality with deadly earnestness. Now therefore we the people ask that the powers-that-be develop a sense of humour, understand that a comedy channel’s off-colour jokes or a cartoonist’s scribble should be way down the priority list for any government, or else rename themselves as Farce – a non-fiction programme for entertainment not to be taken seriously by anyone. Comedy Central is part of the Network18 group which also owns Firstpost.