Reporter TV MD Anto Augustine seeks anticipatory bail in new case

Thiruvananthapuram: Trouble mounted for jailed Reporter Broadcasting Corporation Managing Editor Anto Augustine on Saturday as he approached the Thiruvananthapuram District Court seeking anticipatory bail in a case registered against him on the complaint of senior Congress leader and KPCC spokesperson Raju P. Nair over an alleged false marriage claim against Kerala Chief Minister V.D. Satheesan.

The court will consider Anto's anticipatory bail plea on September 23, IANS reported.

The development came on the day Raju P. Nair appeared before the Kalamassery police and gave his statement in connection with the complaint.

Anto, who is currently in judicial custody in another case, has been named the first accused in the FIR.

Two others have also been booked for their alleged role in the conspiracy.

The Thiruvananthapuram City Cyber Police had earlier recorded Raju P. Nair's detailed statement based on his complaint to the State Police Chief.

The Kalamassery police are now expected to question more persons and widen the investigation.

After giving his statement on Saturday, Raju P. Nair told the media that a major conspiracy was behind the allegations against the Chief Minister.

He alleged that Anto had revived the allegations at a time when the offices of Reporter TV were being searched by agencies, including the Enforcement Directorate.

Raju alleged that the episode was part of a blackmail strategy aimed at putting pressure on authorities during a difficult phase for the channel.

Anto has maintained that the documents he had cited were handed over to him by two young men.

He had also claimed to possess a marriage certificate purportedly issued by a Sub-Registrar's Office in Karnataka.

Raju alleged that the certificate was fabricated and demanded that all documents claimed to be in Anto's possession be seized and subjected to forensic examination.

He said this was necessary to establish the source of the documents and identify those allegedly behind the conspiracy.

The FIR alleges that Anto knowingly possessed and circulated forged documents and that there was a deliberate attempt to defame an elected representative and the office he holds.

The allegations are part of the police case and have not been established by a court.

With the police intensifying the probe and the anticipatory bail plea scheduled for hearing on September 23, the case is likely to add to Anto's legal troubles.

This fresh incident surfaced as the Kerala High Court is set to take up his bail plea in the abkari case in which he is now jailed, on Tuesday (September 22).