Punjab Guv threatens defamation proceedings against CNN-IBN

The Punjab Governor-cum-Administrator, Union Territory of Chandigarh Gen (retd) S F Rodrigues sought an apology from CNN-IBN authorities and threatened to launch criminal and legal proceedings against the channel authorities if they fail to comply for the repeated telecast of the reported audit findings of the Union Home Ministry and the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) of sale of prime land at low rates to prominent IT companies in the Union Territory. 







The legal notice seeking criminal prosecution for defaming the Governor was served by Mr Anupam Gupta, Standing Counsel for the UT and a Punjab and Haryana High Court lawyer. 







Referring to the telecast of the news item on the land sale subject, beginning on the evening of October 15, the notice that that CNN-IBN has been engaged in "a wanton, malign and repeated telecast of completely outrageous, egregiously false and wholly indefensible slander of the Governor".







"The telecast(s) contents whereof are a matter of record, have been viewed by millions of people around the country and the world and have inflicted grave, incalculable and irreparable damage to the reputation, character and credibility of Gen Rodrigues for which your Channel and all of you, jointly and severally, bear full responsibility", the notice stated.







The enormity of the defamation practised by the Channel against Gen Rodrigues, holding him up before the entire country and the world as a corrupt Head of State/Government involved in a scam running into thousands of crores by corruptly selling off precious government land in the Union Territory to private builders/developers is appalling, the notice said. 







" Suffice it to state that your stark and explicit assertions of corruption against him, without a shred or little of evidence and without even a pretence of an attempt or effort at verification from Gen Rodrigues or the Chandigarh Administration, is a gross and blatant abuse of the profession of journalism and exceeds by far the boundaries of freedom of speech and expression delimited by the Constitution and the law", the notice said.