The Telangana High Court on Tuesday reserved its judgment on an anticipatory bail petition filed by V Ravi Prakash, the former CEO of TV9, after the latter had asked the court to direct the Cyberabad police not to arrest him.
The Cyberabad police are presently investigating a case of forgery and cheating against Ravi Prakash, the former CEO of Associated Broadcasting Company Private Limited (ABCPL), the parent company of TV9.
Contending that the case was being heard by the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT), Ravi Prakash has argued that the FIRs were unlawful and offered to cooperate with the police if the anticipatory bail was granted. The police have already quizzed former TV9 Chief Financial Officer (CFO) M V K N Murthy.
With the completion of arguments, the court reserved its judement without mentionioning a date for when it would be delivered.
While Ravi Prakash had moved the HC, his plea had been dismissed on May 22, following which he moved the Supreme Court. The apex court then redirected him to the HC and asked the latter to take a final call on the matter.
Ravi Prakash, the founder of ABCPL, was forced to step down as CEO after the Board passed a resolution revoking all powers vested with him, last month.
The dispute relates to Alanda Media buying more than 90.54% stake in TV9 recently. The company has alleged that Ravi Prakash actively opposed Alanda's move to appoint four directors.
However, in a scathing letter, Ravi Prakash hit back at Alanda and alleged that the Board members were representatives of political honchos “who are out there to devour ‘every’ journalist and independent media house today.”
Ravi Prakash continues to be a shareholder in the company. He has been replaced by Mahendra Mishra, who has been appointed as the interim CEO.