ARG Outlier, parent company of Republic TV Network, has moved the Bombay High Court seeking protection of its employees from the "malicious witch hunt and abuse of power" by the Mumbai Police during the investigation in the TRP Scam case. .The application seeking a stay on the investigation has been filed in the plea pending before the High Court seeking quashing of the FIRs against Republic and its employees, including Editor-in-Chief Arnab Goswami. The media house had also sought directions to transfer the investigation to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)..ARG states that Ghanshyam Singh, Assistant Vice President, Distribution of Republic Media Network, was arrested by the Mumbai Police and remanded to police custody till November 17, despite his prompt appearances whenever he was summoned..It was claimed that Singh was taken to a separate room by the police and physically tortured. The application states,."Mr. Singh was barabarically hit and whipped with a thick belt that was kept in the room...Mr. Singh was forced to extend his hand before the police officers and he was whipped by a chakki belt three times (twice on the right hand and once on the. left hand). It is clear that the methods of torture were preplanned and put in place even before Mr. Singh's questioning commenced, given the room was already laden with torture tools.".It is claimed that while he was in custody, procedural safeguards were sidelined and that he was assaulted by the Police while in custody..Mr. Singh was barbarically hit and whipped with a thick belt... He was robbed of every basic human dignity.Application filed in Bombay High Court.Singh was also allegedly mentally tortured and threatened with harm to his physical well-being in order to compel him in the to narrate falsehoods and implicate himself and ARG in the TRP Scam case, the application further claims..It has also been alleged that Singh was coerced right from the beginning of his police custody "to manufacture a lie which he categorically and completely denied"..Singh was also never read out his statements made in the police custody, raising an apprehension that the statements may have been altered. He was also asked to falsely implicate his colleagues at Republic TV, the application states..One such employee he was allegedly asked about a lot was Priya Mukherjee, COO Distribution International Revenue & OTT, who was summoned by the Mumbai Police several times for recording her statement..In the meantime, due to a family emergency, when she had to go to Bangalore, the Mumbai Police along with the local police arrived at her residence with the intention to arrest her, the application states..She, however, was granted transit anticipatory bail after moving the Karnataka High Court on November 25..ARG states that in a plea filed before the Allahabad High Court in an incident similar to the present FIR, the High Court transferred the investigation to the CBI..The application claims that subsequently, the Maharashtra government withdrew its consent to CBI for investigating cases in the State, in order to retain its control over the TRP Scam case. .The application relies upon the plea filed by Hansa Research Group alleging the harassment of its employees by the Mumbai Police during the TRP Scam investigation and the statement of the Mumbai Police undertaking to call the employees only twice a week..In the previous hearing of the pending plea, the High Court allowed ARG to amend its plea to challenge the chargesheet filed by the Mumbai Police. .Singh was also granted bail from the Mumbai Sessions Court on Saturday.
ARG Outlier, parent company of Republic TV Network, has moved the Bombay High Court seeking protection of its employees from the "malicious witch hunt and abuse of power" by the Mumbai Police during the investigation in the TRP Scam case. .The application seeking a stay on the investigation has been filed in the plea pending before the High Court seeking quashing of the FIRs against Republic and its employees, including Editor-in-Chief Arnab Goswami. The media house had also sought directions to transfer the investigation to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)..ARG states that Ghanshyam Singh, Assistant Vice President, Distribution of Republic Media Network, was arrested by the Mumbai Police and remanded to police custody till November 17, despite his prompt appearances whenever he was summoned..It was claimed that Singh was taken to a separate room by the police and physically tortured. The application states,."Mr. Singh was barabarically hit and whipped with a thick belt that was kept in the room...Mr. Singh was forced to extend his hand before the police officers and he was whipped by a chakki belt three times (twice on the right hand and once on the. left hand). It is clear that the methods of torture were preplanned and put in place even before Mr. Singh's questioning commenced, given the room was already laden with torture tools.".It is claimed that while he was in custody, procedural safeguards were sidelined and that he was assaulted by the Police while in custody..Mr. Singh was barbarically hit and whipped with a thick belt... He was robbed of every basic human dignity.Application filed in Bombay High Court.Singh was also allegedly mentally tortured and threatened with harm to his physical well-being in order to compel him in the to narrate falsehoods and implicate himself and ARG in the TRP Scam case, the application further claims..It has also been alleged that Singh was coerced right from the beginning of his police custody "to manufacture a lie which he categorically and completely denied"..Singh was also never read out his statements made in the police custody, raising an apprehension that the statements may have been altered. He was also asked to falsely implicate his colleagues at Republic TV, the application states..One such employee he was allegedly asked about a lot was Priya Mukherjee, COO Distribution International Revenue & OTT, who was summoned by the Mumbai Police several times for recording her statement..In the meantime, due to a family emergency, when she had to go to Bangalore, the Mumbai Police along with the local police arrived at her residence with the intention to arrest her, the application states..She, however, was granted transit anticipatory bail after moving the Karnataka High Court on November 25..ARG states that in a plea filed before the Allahabad High Court in an incident similar to the present FIR, the High Court transferred the investigation to the CBI..The application claims that subsequently, the Maharashtra government withdrew its consent to CBI for investigating cases in the State, in order to retain its control over the TRP Scam case. .The application relies upon the plea filed by Hansa Research Group alleging the harassment of its employees by the Mumbai Police during the TRP Scam investigation and the statement of the Mumbai Police undertaking to call the employees only twice a week..In the previous hearing of the pending plea, the High Court allowed ARG to amend its plea to challenge the chargesheet filed by the Mumbai Police. .Singh was also granted bail from the Mumbai Sessions Court on Saturday.