Ready to join investigations: Zee Group chairman Subhash Chandra

Zee Group has denied the allegations and demanded the immediate release of its two senior journalists, alleging that the police action was "illegal" and "designed for something else".

Advocate Rebecca John, appearing for Zee editors, vehemently opposed the prosecutor's arguments saying there is absolutely no embargo that stops her from seeking bail for her clients under any provisions of the CrPC.

"I have full right to move court for bail as the law is bail not jail," she said adding the agency is doing an "absurd" job by opposing the bail on such grounds.

She said, "The CAG report which was aired by Zee news was a constitutional body report tabled in the Parliament. As a channel editor of Zee group, it was my client's responsibility to put forth the truth."

John said that the editors had decided to run news showing Jindal's firm's alleged involvement in the allocation of coal blocks only as per the findings of the CAG report.

"As a journalist, it was my editor's right to show the corruption, was it a police right to register an FIR against them?," she asked.

"I (Zee editors) did pick and choose, does it become a criminal offence?," she said and added, "Has the CAG raised objection that we have shown a false report? It is not like that, we did our job."

She argued that it was Jindal's representative who had met the Zee editors for the deal and they themselves had never went up to them.

She told the court that this can be inferred from the e-mail received by Sudhir Chaudhary, in which JSPL officials had asked for the advertisement agreement as soon as possible.

She said she failed to understand as to who had been induced and who had been put under fear in the whole episode, adding there is no prima facie evidence to book them under extortion as there was no exchange of money.

... contd.

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