Sting reporter sues teacher, India TV channel

NEW DELHI: The reporter of a private TV news channel, who carried out the controversial sting operation here last year against a teacher allegedly pushing a young schoolgirl into prostitution, has filed a criminal case against the channel and the teacher.

Prakash Singh, the reporter, has alleged that he was being framed wrongly in the case.

In his petition, filed in a city court through his counsel, Singh has alleged that the original CD, which he had given to the TV channel, was not aired. Instead the channel edited the CD as per its needs, he has alleged.

"The channel had edited the CD with the purpose of increasing TRP and crossed all barriers of investigating journalism," said Murari Tiwari, Singh's counsel.

Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Alok Aggarwal while accepting the petition posted the matter for hearing Jan 18.

"We have demanded criminal action against Uma Khurana (the accused teacher) and CEO along with four associates of the channel," Tiwari said.

He also stated that his client is constantly getting threat calls from the channel to accept money, which has been recorded.

Uma Khurana was July 30 shown on a television news channel being purportedly involved in pushing a young girl student into prostitution. She was later given a clean chit in the case by the court.

Singh, a reporter of Live India that aired the sting operation, was arrested after it reportedly turned out that the girl who appeared in it making allegations against Khurana was not a student but an aspiring journalist.