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The Hindu
28-07-2025
- The Hindu
BSP leader Armstrong murder case: Didn't you even conduct identification parade, Madras High Court asks Chennai police
The Madras High Court on Monday (July 28, 2025) questioned Greater Chennai City Police for not having complied with even the basic requirement of conducting an identification parade in the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) leader K. Armstrong murder case despite there being many eye witnesses to the crime. Justice P. Velmurugan said, most of the criminal cases end up in acquittal only because of the flaws in the investigation and the present case before him was a classic example. He said, availability of CCTV footage of the crime could not be cited as reason to dispense with the identification parade. When Additional Advocate General (AAG) P. Kumaresan said, the media too had published pictures of the accused and hence an identification parade might not have been of much use, the judge asked, 'Was the media the eye witness to the crime? Media may publish any picture for TRP (Television Rating Points).' According to the prosecution, Armstrong was hacked to death by an eight-member armed gang in the presence of his elder brother K. Veeramani, driver Abdul Kani, real estate broker Balaji and building construction workers Mohanraj and Suresh at Perambur in Chennai on July 5, 2024. Mr. Veeramani too had suffered stab injuries, on his head and back, when he tried to protect his brother and it was on his complaint, the police had registered the First Information Report. The injured complainant had categorically told the police that he would be able to identify the assailants. Yet, the police had miserably failed to conduct an identification parade, the judge lamented. Though the defence counsel would have attacked the results of the parade by citing publication of photographs of the accused in the media, that should not have prevented the police from complying with the legal requirement, he said. The observations were made before the judge reserved his orders on a petition filed by Armstrong's another brother K. Immanuvel to transfer the case to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The petitioner had sought transfer on the ground that the Chennai police had not investigated the case properly. Though the police had completed the investigation in the case and laid a charge sheet against as many as 30 individuals, the petitioner relied upon a Supreme Court verdict to contend that the High Court could still transfer the investigation to the CBI if it was not satisfied with the probe by the local police. Justice Velmurugan told the AAG he would go through the case papers and then decide whether to set aside the charge sheet and order a fresh investigation by the Greater Chennai City police itself or to transfer the probe to any other investigating agency as sought by the petitioner. In a counter affidavit to the transfer plea, the police told the court a Special Investigation Team (SIT) headed by a Joint Commissioner of Police and comprising one Deputy Commissioner, two Assistant Commissioners, 16 Inspectors, 19 Sub Inspectors and 44 constables was formed to solve the Armstrong murder case. The investigation was conducted from all angles and it revealed that the motive for the murder was gang rivalry and previous enmity due to the 2023 murder of 'Arcot' Suresh. Hence, the police filed a 7,087-page charge sheet against 30 individuals who included the wife, brother, brother-in-law, other relatives and associates of Suresh. The prime accused was convict Nagendran who was undergoing incarceration at Vellore Central Prison in another murder case. Further, the second accused 'Shambhava' Senthil alias Senthilkumaran and eighteenth accused 'Mottai' Krishnan alias Krishnakumar, both advocates by profession, were declared absconding. On learning that the second accused could have escaped either to France or the United Kingdom, the police had taken steps to extradite him by issuing Red Corner Notices. They also split the case against the two absconding accused and informed the trial court that seventh accused Thiruvengadam had died during investigation. Stating steps were taken to conduct trial against the rest of the 27 accused who were still under judicial custody and had not been granted bail so far, the police said, the investigation was conducted in a professional manner and that the accused had also been detained under the Goondas Act. The court was further told five country-made bombs, one country made pistol, four 9mm bullets, 13 knives, one axe, eight two-wheelers, four four-wheelers, 27 mobile phones, a Zomato dress and a bag and cash amounting to ₹63.13 lakh were seized from the arrested accused.
Indian Express
03-07-2025
- Business
- Indian Express
More players, modernising system: I&B ministry seeks to amend policy guidelines for TV rating agencies
The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting Thursday proposed amendments to the policy guidelines for television rating agencies, originally issued in 2014, seeking to allow more players into the television ratings business. In a statement, the ministry said the proposed draft removes restrictive provisions from the existing policy guidelines to allow more players to 'democratise and modernise the television audience measurement ecosystem in India.' The ministry has now invited feedback from stakeholders and the general public within 30 days. 'The proposed reforms aim to enable fair competition, generate more accurate and representative data, and ensure that the Television Rating Points (TRP) system reflects the diverse and evolving media consumption habits of viewers across the country,' it said. At present, only the Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) provides television ratings. The new draft seeks to end BARC monopoly, refresh the outdated ratings system and bridge gaps in measuring streaming and mobile viewership, which are among the newer patterns of content consumption among the audience. Once more players enter the business, newer mechanisms to measure viewership ratings from connected TV device viewership such as smart TV platforms or external streaming devices are likely to be devised, it is learnt. According to the government, India has approximately 230 million television households, but only about 58,000 people meters are presently used to capture viewership data, representing 0.025% of the total TV homes. 'This relatively limited sample size may not adequately represent the diverse viewing preferences across regions and demographics,' it said. It said the existing audience measurement technology through TRPs does not sufficiently capture viewership on emerging platforms such as smart TVs, streaming devices, and mobile applications, which are witnessing growing adoption among audiences. It said this gap between evolving viewing patterns and the current measurement framework can affect the accuracy of ratings, which in turn may influence revenue planning for broadcasters and advertising strategies for brands,' it said. 'Recognising these developments, there is a need to strengthen the television rating system to better reflect contemporary content consumption habits in a dynamic media environment,' it said. According to the ministry, existing policies had barriers that discouraged new players from entering the TV ratings sector and cross-holding restrictions prevented broadcasters or advertisers from investing in rating agencies. The proposed draft suggests amendments replacing the earlier requirement that a company's Memorandum of Association (MoA) shall not include any activity like consultancy or advisory services, with a provision which states: 'The company shall not undertake any activity like consultancy or any such advisory role, which would lead to a potential conflict of interest with its main objective of rating.' The draft also proposes to remove restrictive clauses (1.5 and 1.7) which were acting as barriers to entry. 'The proposed amendments aim to allow multiple agencies to foster healthy competition, bring in new technologies, and provide more reliable and representative data especially for connected TV platforms,' the ministry statement noted. It added: 'As viewing habits evolve, so must the way we measure them. The amendments will also enable more investments from broadcasters, advertisers, and other stakeholders to improve rating technology and infrastructure.'
The Hindu
03-07-2025
- Business
- The Hindu
I&B Ministry proposes amendments to rules for TV rating agencies
The Union Information and Broadcasting Ministry has proposed amendments to the Policy Guidelines for Television Rating Agencies, originally issued in 2014. Also Read | TV rating agency BARC suspends ratings for news channels The proposed draft, released on Wednesday (July 2, 2025), removes some restrictive provisions for media houses to allow more players besides the current Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) to democratise and modernise the television audience measurement ecosystem. Observing that the existing system for measuring viewership, Television Rating Points (TRP), did not fully capture the evolving patterns owing to content availability on various platforms including smart TVs, mobile applications, and other online streaming platforms, the Ministry said the gap could affect the accuracy of ratings, which in turn might influence revenue planning for broadcasters and advertising strategies for brands. The Ministry has invited feedback from stakeholders and the general public within 30 days of the issuance of the draft. Also Read: Explained | Has the process to measure TRPs improved? 'The proposed reforms aim to enable fair competition, generate more accurate and representative data, and ensure that the TRP system reflects the diverse and evolving media consumption habits of viewers across the country. India currently has about 230 million television households. However, only about 58,000 people meters are presently used to capture viewership data, representing just 0.025% of the total TV homes. This relatively limited sample size may not adequately represent the diverse viewing preferences across regions and demographics,' it noted. The Ministry said the cross-holding restrictions prevented broadcasters or advertisers from investing in rating agencies. In order to fix the problems, the Ministry has proposed certain modifications that are aimed at fostering healthy competition, bringing in new technologies, and providing more reliable and representative data especially for connected TV platforms. 'The amendments will also enable more investments from broadcasters, advertisers, and other stakeholders to improve rating technology and infrastructure. With these reforms, India aims to build a more transparent, inclusive, and technology-driven TV rating ecosystem,' it added.
