Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) leader A.K Saseendran’s return to the State Cabinet appears a distinct possibility now with the P.S. Antony Commission that had inquired into the allegation of sexual harassment against him finding no evidence to prove the charge.
Mr. Saseendran had resigned on March 26, barely hours after the Mangalam TV channel aired an audio clip of his sexually explicit conversation with a woman. Mr. Antony, whose tenure as the one-man judicial commission is set to end on November 30, submitted his report to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan here on Tuesday.
According to highly placed sources in government, the commission has said that it had no conclusive evidence before it to prove the charge and that the only inference it could, therefore, arrive at was that the audio clip was product of a trap set by the TV channel. This, the commission said, was complete breach of all norms of journalistic ethics and should be proceeded against.
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The panel was mandated to probe under what circumstances the purported conversation had taken place, whether the recorded conversation was later edited or manipulated, who all worked behind the scenes to prepare the audio clip, and whether there was any conspiracy in the recording and airing of the clip.
The commission said the channel had failed to produce the original recording of the alleged conversation. The politicians who had come out against Mr. Saseendran had also not appeared before the commission to give evidence.
The sources said the commission had also called for a ‘British-model’ legislation check media excesses committed by the TV channel. Nobody should have the freedom to intrude into the privacy of individuals. Every institution should observe self-regulation in its functioning. Any breach of the mandate should be visited with stern legal action. The government should frame a guideline for the media. In the specific case in question, it should continue prosecution measures against the TV channel and its CEO.
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In New Delhi, NCP State president T.P. Peethambaran said there would be no obstacle to Mr. Saseendran returning to the Cabinet if the the Commission cleared him of all charges.