With the announcement of schedule for elections to the Legislative Assembly, the State Election Authority has now focussed attention on checking the paid news — advertising in the garb of news in media.
The election authority has announced constitution of Media Certification and Monitoring Committee with Chief Electoral Officer Rajat Kumar as its chairman for taking up the additional task of keeping a check on the cases of paid news.
The committee with Additional CEO Jyoti Buddha Prakash as member convenor consists of observer appointed by the Election Commission, Head of Osmania University Department of Journalism K. Stevenson, PIB Additional Director-General T.V.K. Reddy, Press Council member and senior journalist M.A. Majid as its members.
Similar committees would be constituted at the district-level to scrutinise print and electronic media to identify political advertisements in the garb of news coverage. The committee, at the same time, would certify the advertisements in the electronic media in respective districts. Candidates for whom the decisions of the district-level committee were not acceptable could appeal to the State level body within 48 hours. The State level MCMC would examine all the cases of paid news on appeal and it might take up suo motu cases in which it could issue direction to the respective returning officers to issue notices to the candidates.
Candidates could approach the Election Commission against the decision of the State level body and the decision of the EC would be final in this regard.