Bangladesh’s new broadcasting policy is under fire from rights groups for allegedly restricting media freedom.

One national news paper described new guidelines approved by Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s government as “a precursor to granting indemnity to certain institutions.”

The National Broadcasting Policy restricts what can be broadcast on radio and television and proposes to establish an independent broadcasting commission.

It prohibits any news, photos, or videos that could be “contrary to the country’s or the public interest” and forbids news that could cause “communal discord” or impede national security.

It singles out law enforcement agencies and the armed forces for protection from media scrutiny.

While the policy calls for the creation of a statutory independent commission to implement its proposals, its supervision and control will stay with the government, according to news reports.

Many editors and journalists have raised concerns about the policy, some even setting fire to copies of the document as a form of protest.

An editorial in the widely circulated publication ProthomAlo said the proposal was “aimed at tying up the hands and feet of the media.”

The country’s largest opposition party BNP held protests in the capital calling for its repeal.

Shamsher Mobin Chowdhury, the party’s vice-chairman, told Al Jazeera: “The policy allows the government to control the media through a legal framework which is very undemocratic.”

Defending the policy, the government stated that the provisions were not a law and only a “guideline”.