British broadcaster OFCOM found that Channel 4's Celebrity Big Brother 2007 show was guilty of 'serious editorial misjudgments' over its handling of the Shilpa Shetty racism row. The show was dogged by accusations of racism after the actress faced a tirade of abuse from fellow contestants, including Jade Goody, Jo O'Meara and Danielle Lloyd. The media regulator found Channel 4 guilty of breaching the broadcasting code and ordered it to make a series of apologies during the new series of Big Brother next week.

OFCOM also confirmed that unseen footage of racist behaviour inside the Big Brother house did exist.

In its long-awaited report, OFCOM singled out three occasions on which Channel 4 had failed to handle the situation. They were: Jade Goody referring to Shetty as 'Shilpa Poppadom', Lloyd saying that the actress should 'go home' and Lloyd and O'Meara's derogatory comments about Indian eating habits.

"OFCOM takes allegations of racist abuse and bullying on television extremely seriously," the television watchdog said in a statement today.

NRI Labour MP Keith Vaz, former Minister for Foreign and Commonwealth Office, who led protests in Parliament over the issue and introduced Shetty to Prime Minister Tony Blair, on a tour of Westminster, called for Channel 4 Chief Executive Andy Duncan to resign.

He said, "I welcome the adjudication by OFCOM. This is a vindication of our position. Channel 4 has behaved in an arrogant way which has shown contempt for the code of broadcasting. It is only right that they should be punished by having to broadcast, for the first time, an on-air apology. Andy Duncan should apologise to Shilpa Shetty and realise that the contempt that was shown by them during the episode, in my view and that of many of the viewers who complained, now merits his resignation."

Duncan replied, "We accept OFCOM's judgement that on the occasions in question. We did not ensure that Big Brother intervened with the necessary promptness or strength."

In March, police decided that no Big Brother contestants would face criminal charges over allegations that they racially abused Shetty. After winning the show, Shetty sought to play down the racism row.

"People make mistakes and we are all human beings and we are all fallible," she said. "I know one thing for sure, Jade really didn't mean to be racist."

Shetty said the best thing to have come out of the show was that 'people have suddenly woken up and want to take a stand against racism. My job is done.'