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A special CBI court on Saturday sentenced a former officer of Doordarshan to one-year imprisonment and acquitted six others in a corruption case registered in 2000. Two of the accused died during the pendency of trial while one accused is still on the run.
CBI special Judge J K Pandya held Dilip Wagheshwari, who was then programme executive in Ahmedabad Doordarshan Kendra, guilty of the offence and sentenced him to one-year imprisonment. Wagheshwari is among the ten accused who had been booked by CBI in 2000.
Lawyers said that other accused, including Hetal Trivedi, who was caught accepting bribe, Narendra Dalal, Deepak Antani, P L Ahuja, Naresh Baburao Borde and Rishiraj were acquitted.
According to lawyers, the delay in trial and key witnesses not appearing went against the prosecution, thus failing to prove their case beyond reasonable doubt.
According to details, Wagheshwari who was then program executive during 1998-99 “entered into a criminal conspiracy… to issue “A” category certificate to Gujarati films, against the prescribed norms by forging preview report…”
Co-accused Nimmi Mukesh Sagar was proprietor of Chirag International and she had also applied for gradation of a film “Chhuta Chheda” and obtained forged certificate by “entering into a criminal conspiracy with Wagheshwari.” She is still absconding.