The broadcast of Gaan Bangla, a private music-focused television channel in Bangladesh, has been suspended.
The channel went off-air abruptly at around 12pm on Wednesday.
It has been reported that the Bangladesh Satellite Company Limited (BSCL) discontinued the broadcast due to unpaid fees exceeding Tk1.5 crore.
This information was disclosed in a press release by BSCL.
The statement mentioned that despite repeated reminders, Gaan Bangla Television, operated by Birds Eye Mass Media and Communication, failed to clear its dues on time.
The broadcast will resume only after the pending payments are settled.
Shah Ahmedul Kabir, general manager of Sales and Marketing at BSCL said: "The channel owes us a significant amount of money. They have repeatedly exceeded the terms of our agreement. Despite issuing reminders and letters, they have only made partial payments sporadically. This situation is unsustainable, so we have temporarily disconnected the service. If they clear their dues, we will restore the connection."
He added: "Kaushik Hossain Taposh, the Managing Director of the organization, and his wife Farzana Munny, who is the Chairman, have never been in direct contact with us. They are unreachable. Instead, Taposh's father, Delwar Hossain Raja, has been communicating with us. We spoke with him as recently as yesterday, explaining the substantial outstanding amount and that we can no longer maintain the connection under such conditions."
According to Kabir, Gaan Bangla owes a total of Tk1.6 crore in satellite fees.
Gaan Bangla's Managing Director, Kausik Hossain Taposh, is currently in jail following his arrest in connection with an attempted murder case filed at Uttara East police station in Dhaka, linked to an anti-discrimination movement.
The whereabouts of his wife remain unknown.