News regulator rebukes News18, Rubika Liyaquat for ascribing guilt to Arvind Kejriwal in liquor case
The News Broadcasting and Digital Standards Authority directed the channel to delete the offending portions of the broadcast within seven days.
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The News Broadcasting and Digital Standards Authority has censured News18 India and its anchor Rubika Liyaquat for violating broadcast ethics by attributing guilt to former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in the liquor policy case, in which probe is ongoing.
The regulatory body directed the channel to delete the offending portions of the broadcast within seven days.
The programme, Goonj with Rubika Liyaquat, aired on March 28 and discussed Kejriwal’s arrest by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with allegations of corruption in the Delhi excise policy.
The complainant, Pune-based activist Indrajeet Ghorpade, has alleged that the broadcast breached neutrality guardrails and promoted political bias. In his plea, he cited instances where Liyaquat repeated unverified claims of wrongdoing on the part of the Aam Aadmi Party leader.
In its order dated January 24, News Broadcasting and Digital Standards Authority Chairperson Justice AK Sikri, a retired Supreme Court judge, stated: “There was no problem with the anchor defending the prime minister…However, the problem lay in the manner in which the anchor had attributed guilt in a matter that is subjudice.”
The authority found that Liyaquat failed to counter false claims made by Bharatiya Janata Party spokesperson Shehzad Poonawala, who claimed that courts had denied Kejriwal bail because he had been involved in the alleged...
