The Hindu : Notices to Centre, RBI on plea against FDI in print media

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Jul 16, 2002

Southern States

Southern States - Tamil Nadu

Notices to Centre, RBI on plea against FDI in print media

By Our Staff Reporter

CHENNAI JULY 15. The Madras High Court today ordered notices to the Union Government and the Reserve Bank of India on a petition challenging the Cabinet decision to allow foreign direct investment in the print media.

The First Bench, comprising the Chief Justice B. Subhashan Reddy and Justice D. Murugesan, which posted the matter to July 18, also ordered notices to the Union Information and Broadcasting Secretary, Chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Information Technology and the Foreign Investment Promotion Bureau.

Opposing any interim injunction on the Government decision, the senior Central Government standing counsel, Madanagopal Rao, said it would have far-reaching consequences for it was an economic policy decision of the Centre.

M.S. Sivakumar submitted that the Cabinet decision allowing 26 per cent FDI in news and current affairs publications and 74 per cent in non-news and non-current affairs publications was taken without consulting any of the 12 news organisations, including the Indian Newspaper Society and the All India Newspaper Editors Conference.

He said local publications should be "owned, managed and controlled" by Indians as external organisations would operate only with the motive of making profit by employing dummy editors.

Number plates case

The Bench ordered notice on another petition against a notification of the Union Ministry of Road Transport and Highways specifying colour code for private and commercial vehicles.

The petition, filed by advocate S. Veerabahu, was posted to July 29 for further hearing.

According to the petitioner, specifying colour code for vehicles was outside the ambit of the Central Government as per the relevant provisions of the Central Motor Vehicles Act 1988.

Only the Regional Transport Office personnel and the Motor Vehicle Inspectors, not the traffic policemen, were authorised to impose spot fines on violators, he said.

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