Family feud to delay Bhaskar’s Bihar plan

Plans by the DB Corp to launch an edition of the Dainik Bhaskar newspaper in Patna could get delayed after a joint owner of the title filed objections earlier this week to the proposed publication.

Plans by the DB Corp to launch an edition of the Dainik Bhaskar newspaper in Patna could get delayed after a joint owner of the title filed objections earlier this week to the proposed publication.

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The strife has already blocked a proposed publication of an edition in Noida by one group, and in Dehradun by the other. Sanjay Agrawal, joint owner of Dainik Bhaskar, said on Friday that he had filed an application against his relatives, the owners of the DB Corp, for attempting to produce an edition of Dainik Bhaskar from Patna and Ranchi.

Sanjay and the DB Corp are joint owners of the title.

Sanjay said that the sub-divisional magistrate (Patna Sadar) had on May 18 sought a clarification from the DB Corp regarding the objections raised by him. He said unless he was given a “share” he would not withdraw his objections. The DB Corp has been given seven days to file its reply, he added.

The DB Corp owns rights to publish Dainik Bhaskar in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Delhi and Chandigarh. Sanjay, on the other hand, owns rights for UP.

Since the title is jointly owned, under rules, either owner requires a no-objection certificate from the other to be able to publish. The existing editions were set up prior to the dispute.