Prasar Bharati CEO Lalli likely to be suspended

New Delhi: Prasar Bharati CEO BS Lalli has reacted to Presidential nod to probe corruption charges against him. Lalli said that it was sad to face this after 40 years of unblemished service. He said that the Supreme Court enquiry will reveal true picture.

Lalli claimed that there was complete transparency in functioning of Prasar Bharati. "Hope Supreme Court enquiry gets finalised quickly," said Lalli.

Earlier on Thursday, President Pratibha Patil okayed a government request that asked for a Supreme Court judge to look into corruption charges against the Prasar Bharati CEO.

The President has said it is upto the government to decide if Lalli should be suspended while the inquiry is conducted.

Prasar Bharati, an autonomous corporation of the Information and Broadcasting (I&B) Ministry, governs state-owned Doordarshan and All India Radio.

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According to the Prasar Bharati Act, the CEO can only be removed after a Supreme Court judge finds the person guilty.

Lalli took over as CEO in December 2006. He was indicted by the country's top watchdog on corruption - the Central Vigilance Commission - of violating the rules while awarding broadcast rights of cricket matches to private channels.

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Lalli was also recently at the centre of a controversy related to the Commonwealth Games. A Rs 246-crore broadcast rights deal was allegedly riddled with problems - the company that won the contract, SIS Live, had not met the required tax registration formalities; banking and other documents are being studied for discrepancies. SIS Live also sub-contracted its work to a Delhi company named Zoom Communications - Lalli is accused of allowing this without getting the required sanctions from the I&B Ministry. (Read: Lalli's statement)