DUBAI: Iran’s state TV chief has rejected to air advertisements promoting online shopping for free, citing a business conglomerate would sue them if they do so, as seen on a video leaked from a meeting of the country’s COVID-19 Task Force. The video showed President Hassan Rouhani speaking to Ali Asgari, the chief of Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting Organization (IRIB), asking him to air free-of-charge ads for online retailers to encourage Iranians to stay at home, and just do their shopping online amid the outbreak. But Asgari said doing so would lead to a problem – an economic conglomerate known as TOSKA, a Persian acronym for a company registered as “Developing Iranian Businesses,” would sue IRIB. The video, circulated on Twitter, gained several reactions including a post by former Vice President Abdollah Ramenzanzadeh who questioned the “powerful people who run TOSKA and why the IRIB chief is defending it.” Persian media Radio Farda traced the affiliates of TOSKA and found it is related to Tadbir Holding, the financial wing of The Headquarters to Implement Imam Khomeyni’s Decree. The report added TOSKA sponsors 79 programs on the Iranian state TV, which makes it its “most important and prolific producer.”