The Ananda Vikatan group, in a statement on Thursday (February 27, 2025), vowed to take action “to both defend freedom of expression and restore access to the [Vikatan magazine’s] website”, indicating possible legal action.
The magazine has resisted an order by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to take down a cartoon featuring Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a web-only graphic that drew the ire of BJP Tamil Nadu president K. Annamalai.
The cartoon featuring Prime Minister Narendra Modi in chains seated beside U.S. President Donald Trump, a reference to undocumented Indians in chains being deported from the U.S., remains online at the time of this article going to press.
The magazine’s primary domain, vikatan.com, remained inaccessible for some users since February 15. The magazine made a second domain name, anandavikatan.com, available for access.
While the website was rendered inaccessible by some Internet Service Providers without a formal announcement from the Union government, The Hindu learned from four people in the know that the I&B Ministry issued a blocking order to telecom operators and Internet providers via the Department of Telecommunications. After this, the Ministry issued a notice to Vikatan’s publishers under the IT Rules, 2021, seeking removal of that particular cartoon, while making no mention of the website blocking order that had earlier been issued. The magazine made its case on February 20 in a virtual hearing with the Ministry.
“Vikatan provided a detailed explanation that the specific cartoon was an expression of freedom of speech,” the magazine said in its statement. “Subsequently, on the night of February 25, the final order from the [I&B Ministry] regarding this matter was sent to Vikatan. In response, Vikatan is now consulting legal experts to determine appropriate next steps,” a statement from the magazine said.
A source with knowledge of the order and the hearing with the inter-departmental committee that heard Vikatan’s arguments against taking down the cartoon told The Hindu that the Ministry has now specifically demanded that the cartoon featuring the Prime Minister be taken down.
A legal executive at Vikatan declined to provide details on the order and the hearing as the order and the proceedings are confidential. The I&B Ministry did not respond to a request for comment.
