Investigators say Jindal may also be asked to join probe

A day after Zee group chairman Subhash Chandra claimed that Naveen Jindal had contacted him following an attempt by two Zee News editors to blackmail him, Delhi Police sources said the latter might be asked to join investigations into the alleged Rs 100 crore extortion bid “if the need arose”.

A day after Zee group chairman Subhash Chandra claimed that Naveen Jindal had contacted him following an attempt by two Zee News editors to blackmail him, Delhi Police sources said the latter might be asked to join investigations into the alleged Rs 100 crore extortion bid “if the need arose”.

HT Image

At the conclusion of his seven-hour questioning on Sunday evening, Essel Group Chairman Subhash Chandra had told reporters that he had been contacted by the latter ‘several times’ after he filed his criminal complaint against arrested Zee editors Sudhir Chaudhary and Samir Ahluwalia.

“I don’t know how our editors got embroiled in this case, but it was, in fact, Jindal who had offered us a package of R25 crore in return for favours. We have been silent on the issue so far but from tomorrow, we will make sure that our side of the story is also heard,” Chandra had said.

Senior officers, citing Jindal’s cross-examination in the light of Chandra’s allegations as ‘plausible’, said the Congress MP might be asked to join investigations into the alleged attempt if Chandra stated the same during questioning.

“The allegations in question have been made in front of the media and have not been disclosed during the normal course of investigation which is currently underway,” said an officer. “If Mr. Chandra makes these statements during his questioning we will, as per law, be bound to cross-examine Mr. Jindal as well,” he added.

Chandra’s questioning on Sunday, police said, mainly centred around the alleged extortion bid by the two arrested Zee News journalists.