Court issues production warrant for Zee editors for Dec 8

Delhi court has issued warrants to produce two Zee News editors before it on December 8, on a plea by the police for their custody.

The police has sought their custody to confront them with Zee group Chairman Subhash Chandra and his son in a case of their alleged bid to extort Rs 100 crore from Congress Member of Parliament Naveen Jindal's group firm.

Metropolitan Magistrate Neha issued the production warrants, directing jail authorities to produce Zee News head Sudhir Chaudhary and Zee Business Editor Samir Ahluwalia before her. "Issue production warrant to accused Sudhir and Samir (for December 8)," the court said.

The court's order came on an application moved by Delhi police's crime branch on Tuesday seeking a day's custody of the two accused for confronting them with Essel Group Chairman Chandra and his son Punit Goenka, a Managing Director of Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited.

Both Chaudhary and Ahluwalia, presently lodged in Tihar jail, have been booked under section 384 (extortion), 420(cheating), 120 B (criminal conspiracy) and 511 (punishment for attempting to commit offences punishable with imprisonment for life or other imprisonment) of the Indian Penal Code.

The court had rejected their bail pleas on Monday saying they have not given any new ground for their release on bail in their fresh applications after dismissal of their first one on November 28.