India bans AXN

These days the Indian political establishment is quite busy watching television. So while our Finance Minister speaks about reality shows, the venerable, honorable ‘Information & Broadcasting’ minister bans the action channel AXN.

I have not seen Indian television for many years now, but what I gathered from media is that our minister was offended by a program aired by AXN, the “World’s Sexiest Commercials”. This proved too much for the taste of our minister and prompt came the order. Honestly, I am less surprised and more disgusted by the attitude of our successive ‘Information & Broadcasting’ ministers.

The minister termed the programs on the channel as “against good taste or decency and are likely to affect public morality”. He thinks it is against the Indian culture to have such shows on our television. If the minister thinks that Indian culture is threatened by so much as a pair of breast, then he should rethink on what he is trying to save? He talks about public morality, the same morality which was in full display when a girl was molested by the crowd in the most ‘public’ place of India, ‘Gateway of India’ in Mumbai. The same public morality, which he must be seeing, everyday, as he drives his car on the streets of Delhi. Crowds gathered across the world to welcome New Year and where no girl was molested; they don’t have public morality, so they can see AXN. The Indians can’t, because we have a hero, a savior of our public morality and culture.


If the minister’s taste is offended then he should switch off the TV and take a hike. Average Indians are not imbecile to be not able to decide what is good or bad for them. We haven’t given this right to our ministers. If the wants to be such a minister, then he can take a plane ride to Afghanistan. Same as his colleague in previous government did, and whose Broadcasting minister he is trying to emulate. Otherwise don’t try to be our moral guardian and cut back on hypocrisy, please!