Prasar Bharti lashes out at ex-CEO over BBC reportage of Delhi riots

New Delhi: Ex-Prasar Bharati CEO Jawahar Sarkar has come under fire from his former subordinates for allegedly making disparaging remarks following Prasar Bharti's complaint against BBC's reporting of the recent Delhi violence.

Not taking their former CEO's uncomplimentary comments about Prasar Bharti lightly, the reporters and staff of the national news broadcaster have targeted Sarkar. A hard hitting statement, signed by senior editorial staff of Prasar Bharti, alleged that "the BBC reportage deliberately hid crucial facts pertaining to Delhi riots."

"But it is unfortunate that when present CEO of Prasar Bharti (PB) took a stand on it, former CEO Jawahar Sarkar vilified PB by calling it 'Prachar (advertisement) Bharti' instead of standing with the organisation and the country," the statement said.

BBC's coverage of the Delhi riots that killed 53 people has been perceived as one-sided by many. In one of its reports, it alleged the riots were targeted against one particular community, which is far away from the truth.

Earlier, Prasar Bharati CEO Shashi Shekhar Vempati, in an unprecedented move, had declined BBC's invitation to an event on the grounds that the broadcaster's coverage of the Delhi riots was "one-sided", "without context" and insinuated "communal behaviour".