Public broadcaster Doordarshan signs Rs.15 crore/annum deal with tainted Journalist Sudhir Chaudhary, who faced two jail terms

Doordarshan signs deal with controversial journalist Sudhir Chaudhary

In a surprising development, India’s public broadcaster Doordarshan has entered a deal of Rs.15 crore per annum with controversial news presenter and journalist Sudhir Chowdhary, who was in prison for fake news and media extortion. Why the public broadcaster Doordarshan News (DD News), directly monitored by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s media team entered a daily news presentation agreement with a tainted person like Sudhir Chowdhary?

“RESOLVED that the approval of the Board is hereby accorded to/ for engagement of M/s ESSPRIT Productions Pvt Ltd and leading news anchor Shri Sudhir Chaudhary on nomination basis under Rule 194 (Clause (iii) and (iv) of GFR 2017, to produce one-hour duration exclusive show from DD News (to air on 5 days a week) at Rs.15 crore per annum plus GST, which will be subject to escalation at the rate of 10% every year”…

“The reconstituted Negotiation Committee met on five occasions between 6th-20th Feb 2025 and held negotiations with the production company M/s ESSPRIT Productions Private Limited represented by Shri Sudhir Chaudhary. After a series of deliberations on the cost of production to be incurred by Prasar Bharati by way of providing infrastructure like hardware, studio utilization cost, space, furniture, news agency charges, and other miscellaneous expenses, both parties agreed on the cost of producing one-hour duration exclusive shows to be aired on 5 days a week on DD News (total 260 shows in a year) at Rs.15.00 crore per annum plus GST, which was within the figure of Rs.28.60 crores plus tax for producing one hour programme of 260 shows a year as per CBC approved rates dated 24.5.2012, “ says the agenda of the Prasar Bharti Board, which controls public broadcasting entities like Doordarshan.

The Negotiation Committee, which met between February 6 and 20, 2025, held discussions with ESSPRIT Productions Pvt Ltd, represented by Sudhir Chaudhary, to finalize the contract. The agreed-upon cost for producing 260 episodes annually was deemed within the CBC-approved rates set in 2012, despite the additional infrastructure costs to Prasar Bharati, including studio facilities, hardware, space, furniture, and news agency charges.

Meanwhile, there are no public documents and details available about the little-known company M/s ESSPRIT Productions Pvt Ltd, linked with Sudhir Choudhary.

Sudhir Chowdhary’s two jail terms

In 2008, Sudhir Chowdhary was arrested and jailed for a fake story against a school teacher, alleging she for running a prostitution racket of school girls. At that time the tainted Sudhir Chowdhary was the Editor of the TV channel – Live India. The TV channel was banned for a few weeks for this fake story and Sudhir Chowdhary was jailed. The detailed report of this incident can be read here[1].

In 2012, Sudhir Chowdhary was again jailed for trying to extort Rs.100 crore from Jindal Group for hushing up the firm’s role in Coal Scam. That time Sudhir Choudhary was heading Subhash Chandra’s Zee Group and was caught for trying to extort Rs.100 crore from Jindal Group. Chowdhary and Zee Business Editor Samir Ahluwalia was arrested and imprisoned in Tihar Jail for months. Delhi Police was acting on the complaint filed by Jindal Group head Navin Jindal and Zee Group’s Subhash Chandra was interrogated by Delhi. The details of the unethical journalism by Sudhir Chowdhary can be read here[2].

The question is why Subhash Chandra gave a job to Sudhir Chowdhary for doing a fake prostitution report against a poor school teacher and jailed in 2008? For the past two years, Sudhir Chowdhary has been working with India Today Group after leaving Zee. Why does India Today entertain such a tainted person? Many times Prime Minister Narendra Modi who speaks against corruption in public has given interviews to this tainted journalist and has now given a Rs.15 crore bumper deal per annum to present the show on public broadcaster Doordarshan News. Why Modi government cut a deal with tainted Sudhir Chowdhary, who faced imprisonment two times – one for a fake prostitution story and another for extortion?

Reference:

[1] Fake sting case: TV channel’s editor gets bail – May 29, 2008, News 18

[2] Zee News editors sent to Tihar jail – Dec 01, 2012, HT

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