The Information and Broadcasting ministry of India had ordered the entertainment channel Comedy Central on May 17 to go off air from May 25 to 04 June 2013 for telecasting obscene dialogues and vulgar words derogatory to women and offensive words in ‘Stand Up Club’ and ‘Popcorn’ programmes on May 26 and July 4 last year.

Earlier, the ministry had issued a show cause notice to the channel for telecast of the said programmes which appeared to violate many provisions of the Cable Television Networks Rules, 1994.

The provisions include: no programme should be carried in the cable service which offends against good taste or decency; no programme should be carried which contains anything obscene, defamatory, deliberate, false and suggestive innuendos and half truths.

However, the channel filed an appeal on 27th May 2013 in the Delhi High Court against a single judge order upholding the Centre’s decision to stop its transmission for ten days and prayed that prohibition of transmission will cause irreparable loss and damage to the appellant. It will also put an end to the popularity and the viability, commercially or otherwise, of the channel.