Issue 57 Vol III, February 15, 2008

L A W  &  J U S T I C E

Controversy over Broadcasting Rights on Gurbani
Joginder Singh Toor

A controversy; legal, moral and religious over broadcasting of the Gurbani from Sri Harmander Sahib confronts the Sikh. A legal battle between the Siromani Gurudwara Parbandhak Committee and E.T.C Channel on the one hand and Tata Sky Ltd. on the other concerns all those who have been votaries of its broadcast from Sri Harmander Sahib directly to listeners the world over.

The Siromani Gurudwara Parbandhak Committee has entered into an agreement with E.T.C network Ltd. on September 15, 2000 “granting and assigning the ETC, the sole, exclusive, absolute and full world-wide broadcasting rights”. From the reading, on the face of it, it appears that only the broadcasting rights have been granted or assigned but the term broadcasting  as defined in the agreement involves “all rights to record, broadcast, telecast, web-cast, screen or reproduce live or recorded (audio-visual) recitation of Gurbani Kirtans Programmes etc from the Golden Temple at Amritsar to the whole world or any part thereof for free to air or subscription based or any other kind of viewing through or by any medium electronic or otherwise, including but not limited to television, satellite cable, internet, hereinafter referred as “Broadcasting Rights”.

The terms include, tenure of 11 years from the date of signing of the agreement and the S.G.P.C. undertaking that this contract is irrevocable for its entire duration of 11 years subject to review after a period of 5 years if the company has failed to fulfill any material obligation.

The consideration for the contract is a sum of two crores and one lakh rupees to be initially paid in installments by March 31, 2001. Apart from this a total sum of Rs.50 lakh per annum for every financial year and in addition to it the company (E.T.C) pay to S.G.P.C 10% of gross revenue generated from advertisements immediately before and after Gurbani. The S.G.P.C. also agreed “that the complete perpetual world-wide rights regarding satellite and terrestrial television or any other medium through which the recording made at the Golden temple can be made available to the masses will be the sole property of the Company”. The Company is free to assign and transfer the rights under the agreement in favour of any sister concern or subsidiary company of which the S.G.P.C will be bound.

Tata Sky Ltd. is a service provider Direct To Home (DTH) through the satellite directly to the consumer’s premises by installing a dish and claims to be a license holder from Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. They have filed a Writ Petition in the Punjab and Haryana High Court against the S.G.P.C., E.T.C and Zee Turner Ltd. impleading Telecom Regulatory Authority of India as well. They claim that (Broadcasting and Cable Services Inter-connection Regulation, 2004) introduced the concept of ‘must provide’ which require every broadcaster to provide its television signals to all platforms of carriage including DTH operators on non-discriminatory, just, fair and reasonable terms. According to them, “since consumer’s interest is paramount, ETC and Zee Turner should ensure that signals of ETC Punjabi are available in just and fair manner to DTH and they having spent in investments to the tune of thousands of crores for the DTH services by superior technology and offer the viewers a choice but the ETC and Zee Turner having got exclusive rights from S.G.P.C are not providing them satellite signals for DTH service. They are providing signals either to the cable operators or other operators of their choice, violating the norms and the spirit of the regulations framed by the TRAI.

Another interesting aspect of the case has emerged with the application of Guru Nanak Universal Brotherhood Society (Regd.) by filing an intervention application in the case claiming that commercialization of Gurbani is not permitted. The S.G.P.C has no authority to enter into such contract. The religious recitals should not be restricted as it is against the spirit and norms of Sikhism. It should not be subject-matter of commercial clash. Restricting the broadcast and confining the broadcasting rights is basically against the spirit of Gurbani and Sri Guru Granth Sahib and its universal approach. Commercialization of the medium of excess to programmes and the recitals from Sri Harmander Sahib, amounts to sale of God’s name which Guru Nanak Dev prohibited in unequivocal words saying “fXqr[ fsBk ek ihftnk fi fbfy fbfy t/ufj BkT[” “Cursed are the lives of those who read and write the Lord’s Name to sell it.” Rumours are afloat that the contesting parties are trying a compromise. ETC/Zee Turner is demanding Rs.37/- per viewer world-over and Tata Sky offering around Rs. 8/- per viewer so that a judicial verdict and religious controversy is avoided.

[The author is a senior lawyer based at Chandigarh, jogindersingh_toor@yahoo.com]

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