Vikatan's Digital Ban Over Modi Cartoon Reveals A Well-Oiled Censorship Mechanism

For Hasifkhan💧, the staff cartoonist at ‘Ananda Vikatan,’ who depicted Modi chained while seated next to Trump, cyber attacks are nothing new. However, the magazine, one of the most popular in Tamil, facing a ban, came as a shock toꦆ the entire press fraternity in Tamil Nadu. The cartoon that depicted Modi chained has sparked outrage, particularly from right-wing groups. The cartoon was carried in ‘Vikatan Plus,’ the online edition from the Vikatan group of publications. The group has seven magazines, both in digital and print. 

On Saturday, by 7 PM, Vikatan’s website unexpectedly went offline. Murugan, the magazine’s editor and publisher, while speaking to Outlook, detailed the unfolding events. “At first, we couldn’t determine what had happened. By Sunday evening, we received a show-cause notice from the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, asking us to justify why the ma🅘gazine shouldn’t be banned due to the cartoon. We were given until Tuesday (February 18) to respond, but we requested a two-day extension due to the short deadline.” 

On 15 February, the BJP state chief Annamalai filed a complaint with the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and the Press Council of India, alleging that the cartoon was objectionable. On Saturday evening, the officials from the Press Information Bureau of India visited Vikatan’s registered office in Chennai to inquire whether🐈 ‘Vikatan Plus’ was available in print. It was clarified that the magazine was a digital-only publication from the Vikatan group. 

Murugan firmly🔴 asserted that the magazine, with its century-long legacy, would stand by its editorial policies. “We have been publishing political cartoons since Nehru’s time, continuing through different administrations, including those of Dr. Manmohan Singh, Karunanidhi, and Stalin. We have carried cartoons criticising all of them. Our cartoonist will keep doing his work.” He also 🍸emphasised that if the Ministry’s decision goes against the magazine, they will challenge it in court.   

Hasifkhan, 42, the cartoonist, has been with the Vikatan group since 2012 and has frequently faced cyberbullying from supporters of the politicians he caricatures. However, the current wave of attacks from right-wing supporters has escalated beyond criticism of the magazine, now targeting Hasifkhan's religious identity as well. Tamil Nadu’s social media space is deeply dividedꦡ, with right-wing trolls attackiܫng Ananda Vikatan, while others strongly defend it. 

Amid reports suggesting that the ban was lifted, Murugan clarified that access to the website remained inconsistent. “It appea꧅rs to be available on certain neܫtworks but not others. For instance, it’s inaccessible on Jio, Airtel, and Vodafone but works on ACT and partly on BSNL. This suggests an unofficial directive to service providers to block access.” In response, ‘Ananda Vikatan’ launched a new one—a replica of its previous website. 

“DMK followers react when they dislike a cartoon about their leader, and AIADMK supporters did the same when I drew cartoons criticising Jayalalitha. Since Modi’s government came to power, trolling from the right-wing groups has intensified,” Hasifkhan told Outlook. Hꦍowever, it has to be noted that right-wing attacks often take a more personal turn by targeting his religious identity. A graduate in computer science, Hasifkhan, who used to do animations earlier, switched his career to cartoons along with his association with Ananda Vikatan. According to him ,even cyber trolling as a political criticism is fine, but attacking someone on his religious identity is too dangerous to handle. Hasifkhan’s cartoons depict deep political satire that puts the criticism in the right context. Blending humour, irony, and criticism, his caricatures transcend language barriers and provide the story in a nutshell.

The Vikatan group of publications, set to celebrate its centenary in 2026, has faced similar challenges to its freedom💃 of expression in the past as well. In 1987, S. Balasubramanian, widely known as S. S. Balan, then editor of ‘Ananda Vikatan,’ became embroiled in a free speech controversy over a satirical cartoon published on the magazine’s front cover. The Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly’s Privileges Committee sentenced him to three months in prison for the illustration, which featured two generic public figures with a caption reading, “The one who looks like a pickpocket is the MLA, and the other who looks like a dacoit is the minister.” 

Although Balan was jailed, he was released after two days following media outcry and protests. He later challenged the Assembly’s decision in the Madras High Court and won the case in 1994, receiving a compensation 🦄of 1,000 rupees. As a symbolic gesture, he framed the currency notes and displayed them alongside newspaper clippings in his home, marking both the attack on press freedom and his legal victory. 

This incident set a bad precedent, influencing a similar case in Karnataka decades later. In June 2017, the Karnataka Legislative Assembly sentenced two editors, Ravi Belagere of ‘Hi Bangalore’ and Anil Raju of ‘Yelahanka Voice,’ to prison for defamation. ‘Hi Bangalore’ had allegedly published defamatory content about a Congress MLA B. M. Nagaraj while ‘Yelah﷽anka Voice’ had run critical articles about BJP MLA S. R. Viswanath. The Tamil Nadu Assembly’s 1987 decision against S. Balasubramanian served as a reference point for this later case. At the time of Balan’s sentencing, Speaker Paul Hector Pandian had defended the ruling, asserting the ‘sky-high powers’ of the Assembly Speaker and claiming that even the judicia𒉰ry could not challenge his authority. 

Here are some previous political cartoons by Hasifkhan, being republished here with permission from the cartoonist