“Among the reasons for requesting bail, we have cited that his arrest is a flagrant abuse of power and abuse of the legal process. It does not appear in the FIR or on the charge sheet, ”said Pradhan. The bond statement will be heard on Wednesday.
Khanchandani was arrested on Sunday. At the time of his arrest, his advance bond was pending before the session court.
the Mumbai Crime Branch Police So far they have arrested 13 people in the case, including Khanchhandani, Ghanshyam Singh, head of distribution for ARG Outlier Media private limited (which operates Republic TV). Singh is accused of distributing money to manipulate his channel.
A case was recorded in Mumbai in October after the complainant alleged that some households, where barometers were installed, were paid to watch certain channels, to increase the TRP. Initially, the police arrested several former employees of the Hansa investigation, which subcontracted the installation of barometers. The owners of the Fakht Marathi and Cinema Box channels were also previously arrested.
Police said Khanchandani, who was the 13th defendant to be arrested in the case, is the beneficiary of the scam and had knowledge of the crime.
The crime branch is investigating the role of Republic TV, Fakt Marathi, Movie box, News Nation, Mahamovies and Wow music channels to inflate audience figures, a key metric that media buying houses consider when placing ads.
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