Private television channel Deepto TV has announced a temporary suspension of its news operations, according to an announcement made via a news ticker on the channel on Tuesday.
“Due to unavoidable reasons, all news broadcasts on Deepto TV are hereby suspended until further notice,” the ticker stated.
Earlier, on Monday, a question raised during a press conference to Cultural Affairs Adviser Mostofa Sarwar Farooki regarding the martyrs of the July uprising sparked discussion and controversy.
However, it is unclear whether the suspension of news broadcasts is related to that incident.
Media reports said one journalist each from Deepto TV, ATN Bangla and Channel i have been dismissed following the matter.
Meanwhile, Information and Broadcasting Adviser Md Mahfuj Alam said Deepto TV has shut down its news division on its own.
During an exchange of views on "The Reality of the Media in 15 Years of Fascism" at the Secretariat, Mahfuj clarified that the government did not intervene in the matter and make any calls to anyone.
Mahfuj highlighted that during his six months in office, the government has not made any calls to anyone on such matters.
He mentioned that the journalist from Deepto TV has been dismissed and the news division has been closed, noting that people may wrongly assume that the government is behind these actions.
Mahfuj said that when he visited a TV channel for a job in January last year, he was offered a salary of Tk13,000, questioning how one can survive and support a family in Dhaka with such a salary.