JNU row: Delhi govt seeks prosecution of 3 news channels

New Delhi: The Delhi government on Monday alleged in a court here that some of the video footage of the February 9 protests at JNU campus aired by three TV news channels were doctored and sought their prosecution.

Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Sumit Dass, after hearing the submissions of the Delhi Government's counsel, fixed the matter for consideration on the complaint on May 26.

"I am posting the matter for consideration on May 26, the magistrate said. Senior advocate N Hariharan, who appeared for the Delhi government, said the channels reported about clash between students groups at JNU and showed footage of the incident which happened at the university campus on February 9.

He said the video was inaudible so the channels had showed a bubble on the screen with an alleged text Pakistan Zindabad and the the anchor/reporter suggested that such anti-national slogans were being shouted by the JNU students which would not be tolerated by the country.

These programmes were also uploaded on the websites of these channels on 'YouTube', he said. He argued that a CD of these footage was send to forensic science laboratory and the experts have opined that all these bubbles were insertions and tapes were tampered with.

"Because of this we saw violence across the country and in this court complex also. You had seen it. Post violence incidents were also seen," the counsel said.

Hariharan, who was accompained with battery of lawyers, sought the prosecution of the three channels, their editors and anchors for the alleged offences under various sections including 415 (cheating), 465 (punishment for forgery), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating) and 471 (using as genuine a forged document or electronic record) of IPC and provisions of the Information and Technology Act.

The Delhi government sought examination of its complaint under Section 200 of the Code of Criminal Procedure. It has made 12 respondents as parties in the matter, including three news channels, their editors-in-chief, directors and anchors.

PTI