Govt to propose amendments to Prasar Bharti Act in Parliament

                      In the backdrop of political intervention at the highest levels, the government has decided against taking the ordinance route in the Prasar Bharati controversy and will instead bring amendments to the act aimed at whittling powers of the board in the forthcoming session of Parliament.

                 The government sources confirmed on Thursday that the matter was discussed two weeks ago at a meeting of the Congress core group which is attended by both party president Sonia Gandhi as well as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Information and broadcasting minister Ambika Soni alongwith law minister Veerappa Moily were specially invited to the meeting, where they briefed the top Congress leadership about the options.

                Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee, defence minister AK Antony and Ahmed Patel, political secretary to Sonia Gandhi, are the other members of the core group.

            The Prasar Bharati Board, set up 17 years ago by the government to provide autonomy to state-run Doordarshan and All India Radio, has been plagued by controversies in the wake of infighting between its top officials. There have been charges of financial irregularities that are being looked into by the Central Vigilance Commission on the directions of the Delhi High Court. For the last few months, the board has become virtually defunct but the I&B ministry has been unable to take any corrective measures owing to the autonomous character of the board under the Prasar Bharati Act.