Prasar Bharati row: Court suggests internal audit by CAG

                The Delhi High Court today (23-07-2009)  said the alleged financial irregularities in the public broadcaster Prasar Bharati should be inquired into either by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) or by the Central Vigilance Commission and asked the chairman of its board to respond on this issue Friday.

               A bench of Chief Justice Ajit Prakash Shah and Justice Manmohan expressed its view on the government's contention that a joint secretary-level officer would be conducting an internal audit of the public broadcaster.

             The government also assured the court that it would make all-out efforts to bring conciliation between the CEO and the chairman of the Prasar Bharati board for proper functioning of the public broadcaster. 

              Solicitor General Gopal Subramaniam told the bench that the public broadcaster cannot have two different sets of opinion to run the organisation and an additional solicitor general would soon have a meeting with the CEO and the chairman, who have been at loggerheads, to sort out their differences.

           Earlier the court has asked Prasar Bharat CEO Lalli to function strictly within Section 5 of the Prasar Bharati Act which states that he shall exercise such powers and discharge such functions as the board may delegate to him.The goings-on in the 10-member board reached the high court after Lalli accused Bhatnagar of circulating inaccurate and slanted minutes of a board meeting held in January.