Bharatiya Janata Party leader Subramanian Swamy on Monday said news anchor Arnab Goswami had requested permission to rename his TV channel after the MP had objected to it being named “Republic”. On Twitter, Swamy attached an image of an application to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting from ARG Outliers Private Limited, which requested a name change from “Republic” to “Republic TV”.
“Mr Goswami knows that chickens come home to roost. Don’t be a porki with me,” the MP said on Twitter.
In a letter to the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, Swamy had said the licence granted to Goswami should be revoked as it is a “direct breach” of the Emblems and Names (Prevention of Improper Use) Act, 1950.
Certain names and emblems cannot be used for commercial and professional purposes as per the law, Swamy had said in the letter dated January 13. “There is an express prohibition from using the phrase ‘Republic’...Your office may look into the use of ‘Republic’ and determine if it is prohibited to issue a licence under such name,” he told the I&B Ministry.
Goswami had announced his resignation from news channel TimesNow on November 1, after which there were reports that he would launch Republic as his new venture. He formally introduced the channel earlier in January.
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