File Photo: Union Minister Smriti Irani leaving the Fabindia store in Goa, where she claims to have found a camera positioned to record inside the trial rooms. (PTI Photo)
Seven senior officials of Fabindia, including its Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and Managing Director (MD), have applied for anticipatory bail in a Goa court after being summoned by the police in connection with a voyeurism case.
The company's MD William Bissel, CEO Subrata Dutta and five others applied for anticipatory bail on Wednesday in district court in Mapusa town, Superintendent of Police Crime Brach (CB) Kartik Kashyap told Press Trust of India.
The other five officials who have sought anticipatory bail to avoid arrest are - Fabindia's regional manager Ruchira Pujari, marketing chief Ramu Chandra, stores in-charge Kundan Gupta, E-commerce head Arun Naikar and category head Ashima Agarwal, he said.
Their applications would be heard today by the court. The district court had earlier this week granted anticipatory bail to Fabindia's Candolim store manager Chaitrali Sawant, who was questioned by crime branch on Wednesday.
Mr Kashyap said that several Fabindia officials have been summoned for questioning today while the company's MD, and CEO have agreed to be present before the investigators on Friday.
Goa police had arrested four employees of Fabindia outlet at Candolim village near here after Union HRD minister Smriti Irani, who visited the store on April 3, alleged that it had a CCTV camera focusing at the trial room.
They were booked under IPC sections 354C (voyeurism), 509 (intrusion into privacy) and IT Act's section 66E (capturing, publishing image of private area of any person without his/her consent). They were later granted bail.
Fabindia has denied it had placed hidden cameras in any of its stores, holding that the camera in question was part of the surveillance system.