AIR ex-staffer convicted for graft, illegal trade

In 2009, the CBI had filed a case of corruption against three employees of the AIR station in Ahmedabad, including husband and wife Ashlesha and Mihir Mehta, who were working as transcription executive and program executive, respectively.

As per the CBI, the couple had approached the tribal welfare department in 2006 to express AIR’s willingness to air a series for the department. However, when the department agreed to the project, they recommended a private city-based production house, Maanisha Creative Firm, for producing the series. The 102-episode series was later broadcast and the department paid AIR Rs 10 lakh for its production and broadcast. The CBI has alleged that Maanisha Creative Firm was a benami production house owned by the Mehtas.

The third accused in the case, Sadhana Bhatt, though originally name in the complaint, was not chargesheeted, as no incriminating evidence was found on her during searches, the CBI had said.

During trial, Mihir died and was abated from the trial. The CBI court held Ashlesha guilty under sections 168 (public servant unlawfully engaging in trade), 420 (cheating) and 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code as well as Prevention Of Corruption Act.

The court observed, “Corruption is an evil in the society. The menace of corruption is a cancerous epidemic, which has tentacles in the far nooks and corners of our country. It is corruption, which is preventing our country from emerging as a developed country… The corruption by public servants has become a gigantic problem. It has spread everywhere. No facet of public activity has been left unaffected by stink of corruption….”

The court held that the prosecution had proven the case beyond reasonable doubt that during 2006-07, the accused had floated Maanisha Creative Firm in the name of Harsh Yogeshbhai Dhruv and obtained order for the 102 episodes of the program ‘Dungre Dungre Vikas Na Vaira’ from the Gujarat Tribal Development Corporation.

The court noted that the accused, by producing the programme illegally – since AIR employees were prohibited from lending their voice to any private programme and carry out any commercial business – earned an illegal income of Rs 10,75,509.

In all, 18 prosecution witnesses were examined. The court said, “All the witnesses have stood the test of cross-examination… There is nothing found from the evidence of the witnesses, which could cast clouds of doubt on the version of the prosecution witnesses.”

While the sections invoked by the CBI carried a maximum term of seven years, the court took into account factors such as the death of Ashlesha’s husband, her two daughters who live abroad, leaving her with no one to look after her, her social background and her age (60 years) among others.