TRP case: Will not summon Hansa employees more than twice a week, Mumbai Police crime branch tells Bombay high court

In a minor reprieve for Hansa Research Group Pvt Ltd, complainants in the alleged television rating points (TRP) manipulation scam, the Mumbai Police’s crime branch

In a minor reprieve for Hansa Research Group Pvt Ltd, complainants in the alleged television rating points (TRP) manipulation scam, the Mumbai Police’s crime branch on Saturday assured the Bombay high court (HC) that officials of the firm will not be summoned more than twice a week and that they will not be made to wait beyond a reasonable period.

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Senior advocate Devdatta Kamat made the statement on behalf of the crime branch, which is probing the TRP scam.

The statement came after senior advocate CS Vaidyanathan, who represented the company, pointed out that despite being complainants, right from October 6, several officials of the firm were being summoned to the crime branch almost every day and made to wait for eight to nine hours.

Hansa Group, engaged by Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC), for operating and monitoring meters installed in about 16,031 households across India to help assess TRP, has moved HC, seeking transfer of the case to some independent agency, such as the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

In its petition, Hansa Group has alleged that many of its officers, including complainant Nitin Deokar, deputy general manager, Hansa Research Group, were harassed and pressured by the crime branch for securing a false statement that the Hansa report shown on a TV news channel was fake.

Kamat responded by stating that the crime branch has got material against the company and he will substantiate it when the matter is taken up for further hearing.

On October 6, Kandivli police registered an offence against one of the firm’s ex-employees on the basis of a complaint lodged by Deokar after BARC noticed a sudden spike in viewership of certain channels over a period of time till June.