Guwahati, Sept 11: The Central Bureau of Investigation is investigating eight Doordarshan officials, including former Deputy Director General (North East) P K Singson in connection with a scam over a commissioned programme scam worth Rs 1.05 crore, according to CBI sources here today. The investigating agency was carrying out its probe on the basis of an FIR filed by it in the court of the special judge Guwahati in July last alleging irregularities in allotment of commissioned programmes by the eight.

The other DD officials being investigated are former deputy director programme production of Doordarshan, Talak Gara, Assistant Director DDK Guwahati, Mukul Talukdar, Programme Executive of DDK Itanagar Bijon Das, Production Assistants DDK Itanagar Lakhi Ram Das, Bishwa Das and Pannian Das, besides property assistant Deshbandhu Kaejee of the Itanagar station. The FIR alleged, Singson, who was DDG here between 1999-2000 had "entered into a criminal conspiracy" with other accused persons named in the FIR to misappropriate Rs 1.05 crore of special software scheme revenue for production of commissioned programmes by floating bogus production companies in the names of their relatives".

The programmes allotted to the "bogus" companies were approved for telecast by the DD officials without checking their quality, the FIR claimed. Some of the "fake" production companies were the signals, Nefa Communications, Mona Cine Productions, Trans Himalaya Production, Shristi communication, the sources added.

Bureau Report