Puthiya Thalaimurai blackout: TN govt calls it tech glitch, Opposition slams 'suppression of press'

TV viewers and cable operators in Chennai and other parts of Tamil Nadu on Thursday (May 28) afternoon were unable to view Tamil news channel Puthiya Thalaimurai. The device screens turned grainy and had poor reception and audio quality.

The Puthiya Thalaimurai headquarters began receiving incessant complaints stating that the channel, which was previously on the 44th spot on the Tamil Nadu government-controlled Arasu Cable TV network, had been pushed back to the 61st position.

Also read: Puthiya Thalaimurai blacked out on TN govt cable network

Civil society, Opposition, and journalist associations sharply criticised the newly appointed Vijay government in the state for the blackout. Social media was flooded with posts slamming the blackout. However, the state government said it was due to a technical glitch.

By around 9 pm last night, the channel returned to the 44th position on Arasu Cable, and the blackout was fully resolved earlier today.

The Federal is a sister concern of Puthiya Thalaimurai.

Govt denies charges

Minister of Tamil Development and Information, Rajmohan Arumugam, speaking to The Federal, strongly denied any deliberate blackout of the news channel on Arasu Cable Network. The disruption was due to a routine technical fault that was swiftly resolved, he added.

Addressing reporters in Chennai on Friday, Rajmohan again insisted that the channel had not been taken off air. "Nothing of that sort happened," he said. He did admit that in "some places it was pushed back" on Arasu Cable TV and added that "technical glitches were immediately investigated and everything has been corrected".

Also read: Vijay meets Modi in Delhi, raises key demands of Tamil Nadu

“The Puthiya Thalaimurai channel was not disabled on Arasu Cable TV. Due to a technical issue, it was only pushed back. They fixed it in two hours. Do not approach ordinary issues with a negative mindset," he added. “Constructive criticism is necessary for every government. Media is a key pillar of democracy.”

He noted that the channel is now fully visible, including in his own office. “If there is any other problem in airing news, you can approach us,” he said.

What the channel aired

The channel yesterday aired reports saying Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay, during his visit to Delhi to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, did not reply to media queries. In fact, Vijay has not formally interacted with the media as Chief Minister, the channel said.

The new regime that speaks of transparency in governance is not following the usual tradition where, after important engagements, especially in Delhi with the Prime Minister and other dignitaries, the Chief Ministers brief the media, it added.

For a long time now, media freedom in Tamil Nadu has been under pressure, it is widely observed. Subsequent governments have sought to rein in the press, especially TV channels that have a wide reach. This is typically done through Arasu Cable TV.

AIADMK condemns incident

Opposition party AIADMK swiftly condemned the incident, describing it as part of a larger pattern of suppressing dissent. In an official statement on X, it accused the ruling TVK of following the “DMK-model” of authoritarianism, citing a series of actions including cases against social media users, attempts to block Opposition accounts, and arrests of critics.

The party demanded immediate restoration of the channel to its original position and warned that silencing the media undermines democratic principles.

Senior journalist Tarasu Shyam echoed the criticism, terming the episode “arrogance of power”. “Blacking out a channel on government cable, no matter which government does it, is sheer arrogance,” he said. He described the move as an attack on press freedom and linked it directly to Puthiya Thalaimurai’s reportage. “Any such attack on a media outlet is an assault on media freedom itself.”

Shyam dismissed technical explanations as unconvincing, pointing out that the issue was widely discussed on social media and resolved overnight.

Earlier blackout events

Puthiya Thalaimurai has faced similar disruptions under earlier regimes — helmed by both the DMK and the AIADMK — especially on the Arasu Cable network. The latest incident occurred against the backdrop of growing criticism over the Vijay government’s media engagement.

Viewers and journalist bodies, including the Chennai Press Club, took to social media to question whether the blackout was an attempt to muzzle critical voices and undermine democracy.

While the government maintains it was a short-duration "bandwidth" issue, Opposition leaders and journalists view it as symptomatic of intolerance towards independent media.