OTV MD Seeks Probe By National Agency Into ‘False’ Cases

Bhubaneswar: The managing director of Odisha Television Ltd (OTV) Jagi Mangat Panda on Saturday sought investigation by a neutral national agency into 20 ‘false’ cases filed against OTV, its sister companies, employees and her family members, including her 84-year-old father.

Stating that the ‘false’ cases run a gamut of criminal allegations which run counter to OTV’s impeccable 23-year track record of ethics and propriety, she said the state government has been targeting the media house for exposing widespread corruption in Odisha, including recent massive corruption in COVID-19 funds.

“We vehemently deny these allegations. There has been no wrongdoing by us and we are confident that this will ultimately be proved in the courts,” she said in a press release.

She further said, “We assert that these cases are being orchestrated by the 21-year-old BJD government because of chief minister Naveen Patnaik’s personal vendetta against us.”

The recent harassment against the OTV included arrest of five employees, of which two were intimidated and compelled to resign while in custody. “We have been cooperating with the authorities and a large numbers of our employees have been going to police stations for interrogation as and when summoned. Despite this, the harassment continues, including arresting our people in the middle of the night for no good reason,” Jagi said.

However, she said they will continue to seek redressal in the courts against continued harrassment by the Odisha authorities and cooperate with the state authorities on all these cases and allegations.