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Maldives Broadcasting Commission: No further comment on Media Net

Maldives Broadcasting Commission has said at the trial at Civil Court on Thursday, that it does not wish to comment further on the charges filed by Media Net regarding the instruction issued by the commission to stop rebroadcasting FIFA World Cup matches through any channel except TVM and VTV.

Lawyer representing the commission Anas Abdul Sattar said this, when given the opportunity to present his defence, after presenting the copy of a statement issued earlier by Media Net.

Lawyer representing Media Net Shahdy Anwar claimed that due process was not completed by the commission in the issuance of the instruction to Media Net to stop broadcasting Sony Six and Sony Six HD World Cup matches.

Shahdy argued that according to Article 43 of the Constitution and precedents set by the Supreme Court, the commission cannot take action against any group without completing the due process, and furthermore, the commission confessed at the previous hearing, to the basic claims made by Media Net in the case.

Concluding the hearing, Judge Farhad Rasheed announced that the court will deliver its verdict at the next hearing, which has been scheduled for 11:45 a.m. on Sunday.

The World Cup matches have been announced by the Maldives Broadcasting Commission as a listed event. According to the commission, the right to rebroadcast this event was obtained only by TVM and VTV. The opening match and the following match, however, were shown on Ice TV, and the remaining matches have been shown by Indian company Sony Six, via the only cable operator in the Maldives.

The regulation on listed events of the Maldives Broadcasting Commission states that it is the responsibility of the group that obtains the right to rebroadcast a listed event, to inform those who buy the event from them that it is a listed event, by including this in the agreements.

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