The Raipur police have registered cases of criminal conspiracy,extortion and circulation of obscene material against a local private TV station which broadcast a video of a senior government officer with his wife in their bedroom as part of a news report,and accused the officer of making a blue film. In his FIR,M L Haldkar,Chief Executive Officer of the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMSGY),has named,besides two journalists from the channel,five road construction contractors with allegedly high connections and four staff of his department. Someone has conspired and prepared the CD. I am devastated. Do we not have our private life? Dont a husband and wife have the right to stay together? said Haldkar. He alleged there was a conspiracy to defame and blackmail him,and to extort money and favours. Haldkar has the reputation of being an honest and upright officer. According to PMGSY insiders,Haldkar has recently taken strong steps to ensure quality control in road construction,insisting on accountability within the programme and taking action against errant officials and launching recovery proceedings from several contractors. The Chhattisgarh Gazetted Officers Association (CGOA) is now taking up the matter with the Ministry of Information Broadcasting and the News Broadcasters Association,which has repeatedly been talking about self-regulation,and at other appropriate fora for regulating TV content. Who prepared the CD,how and where it was filmed,and who circulated it are matters to be investigated by the police. The question we want to raise is whether the media has the right to make such intrusions,literally into the bedrooms of individuals,severely infringing their privacy, CGOA president Subhash Mishra said. Mishra said Haldkar was contemplating legal action against the channel,and taking up the matter with the Human Rights and Womens Commissions as well. Is it fair on the part of any electronic media to telecast private moments that too of a legitimately married couple and attribute motives to it? Whether the media has overstepped its limits,and exactly what larger public interest is involved in the telecast of such a story,are among the issues to be examined, Mishra said. The channel,Sadhna News,which showed the video after blurring faces,defended its editorial decision,saying the CD was already in circulation in the market at the time of broadcast. We acted well within established norms and guidelines,without violating any law. We did not identify anyone but certainly raised a question of morality with a line,Pati ne patni ki blue film banayi. Our crew,along with another TV journalist,went to the officers residence where all his family members were present,and took his version, head of the channels state bureau,Sanjay Shekhar,said. Shekhar denied charges of blackmail and extortion,described the registration of a criminal case against him as unfortunate,and said he was ready to cooperate with investigators. I performed my duties as a journalist,without any malice, he said.
