UK watchdog revokes Indian diaspora focussed MATV’s broadcast licences

London: The UK's media watchdog has revoked the broadcast licences associated with the Indian diaspora-focused MATV over breach of regulatory conditions, with the satellite channel to be taken off air with immediate effect.

The Office of Communications (Ofcom) issued the revocation notice on Friday after an investigation dating back to August 2024 concluded that the licences were "wrongfully held" by Middlesex Broadcasting Corporation Limited (MBCL).

While one licence was linked with MATV National as a satellite television service broadcasting Indian programming in Hindi, Urdu, English, Gujarati and Punjabi, the second was for MATV Music – also a satellite television service, which reportedly remained dormant.

"In the UK, broadcasting laws made by the UK Parliament state that broadcast licensees must have control over the licensed services – including editorial oversight over the programmes they show," Ofcom said in a statement.

"Our investigation concluded that MBCL, the licence-holder for the MATV National and MATV Music services, did not have editorial responsibility for MATV's output.

As such, MBCL does not meet the legal requirement of having control over the licensed services, and so these services were not being broadcast in accordance with licensing requirements.

"We have given MBCL significant time to come into compliance with the statutory rules. Those efforts have now been exhausted," it stated.

Further details of Ofcom's investigation claim that MATV Broadcasting Limited was providing the services without an appropriate licence granted by Ofcom, a criminal offence under the UK's Broadcasting Act 1990.

The investigators note reaching out to Kuldeep Singh Shekhawat, registered as the licensee's compliance contact, and found that he was simultaneously president of the Overseas Friends of the Bharatiya Janata Party (OFBJP) UK.

Ofcom pointed out that a person is prohibited from holding a licence if "they are a body which is controlled by an individual who is an officer of a body whose objects are wholly or mainly of a political nature".

The watchdog said that it was concerned that the OFBJP UK is "likely to be a body whose objects are wholly or mainly of a political nature".

In representations made to Ofcom, MATV sought to highlight a change in the company's leadership structure with Alpana Kuldeep Singh Shekhawat set to assume the controlling stake to meet the broadcast licence requirements.

"However, Ofcom is yet to receive formal notification of this from the licensee," it stated.

MATV believes the decision to take the channel off air is "politically motivated", claiming that OFBJP UK is not a political entity but a social one that supports Indian diaspora causes.

"MBCL was holding the licenses for broadcasting MATV National. MATV Music never went on air," said Kuldeep Singh Shekhawat, now the Europe in-charge of OFBJP, following an internal restructuring of the group last month.

"Ofcom's decision is politically motivated as they have linked me as a controlling person with political affiliation. Neither was I controlling MATV, nor did I have a controlling stake in MBCL.

OFBJP is not a political party, not even registered as a political party, and we don't have any legal political affiliation or get into any type of politics in the UK.

"We are a social body helping the Indian diaspora. But Ofcom has made a decision, even though I don't control these companies. We will do the needful for Ofcom to allow our channels to broadcast again in the UK," he said.