ZEE Media responds to Dhoni’s defamation case

ZEE Media Corporation Limited has vehemently rebutted the allegations leveled against it in the defamation civil suit filed by Shri Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Captain, India Cricket Team, in the Madras High Court on Tuesday.

In an article on ZEE News, the channel said “it wishes to state categorically that its coverage in this regard has not been aimed to malign either any individual or body but to highlight the growing mess in the sport revered by millions and millions in the country.”

ZEE News added that it had not telecast or shown any footage/dialogue to malign the image of the Indian Skipper. The coverage carried out by the news channel is in the best tradition of credible journalism with the avowed objective to highlight issues that ultimately help cleanse the game of cricket.

The news channel has telecast the story on cricket based on revelations made during the sting operation by Shri Vindu Dara Singh and Shri Sampat Kumar, IPS Officer (who had earlier probed IPL betting case). The story featuring the sting operation was telecast on 24th & 28th February, 2014 respectively.

The news channel conducted the sting operation based on the facts which were in the public domain since series of stories had already been published by various media organizations on the issue during the time period of 10th ��� 14th February, 2014.

ZEE Media Corporation Limited wishes to state here that it has already moved an intervention application on 7th March 2014 along with the evidence in its possession before the Honorable Supreme Court of India in the pending Special Leave Petition (SLP) filed by the Cricket Association of Bihar.