Sushant Singh Rajput Case: NBSA slapped Rs 1 lakh fine on Aaj Tak; Zee News, India TV & News 24 directed to air apology

New Delhi: Popular Hindi news channel Aaj Tak has slapped with Rs 1 lakh fine by the News Broadcasting Standard Authority (NBSA) for broadcasting fake tweets attributing them to late Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput.

The NBSA also directed Zee News, India TV and News24 to air an apology for violating ethics during their coverage of Sushant Singh Rajput’s death case.

Besides imposing the penalty of Rs 1 lakh, the NBSA directed Aaj Tak to air an apology for not conducting the due diligence prior to telecasting fake tweets and attributing them to Rajput.

The channel will have to submit the text, date and time of the apology and proof of its telecast on a CD within seven days of the telecast.

The regulatory body further asked Aaj Tak to immediately pull down the videos showing fake tweets from YouTube and other platforms.

ABP Majha and News Nation were issued a warning for the manner in which the images of Sushant Singh Rajput’s body were shown.

India TV has been asked to air an apology for the same violating as they had shown close-up images of Rajput’s body, Live Law reported.

Besides, the NBSA said Aaj Tak, Zee News and News24 violated guidelines while forming tickers and taglines related to Rajput’s death. They have been asked to air an apology for the same.

Aaj Tak had displayed headlines like “Sushant itne ashant kaise”. Zee News had run tagline “Patna ka Sushant, Mumbai me fail kyu?”. News 24 had used headlines like “Hey, why didn’t you watch your own film Sushant?” “It appears that the questions are being addressed to Sushant Singh Rajput, who is no more, therefore the taglines are offensive, violate privacy and affect the dignity of the deceased,” reads the order by NBSA.