News Broadcasting
TRP scam: Republic TV CEO Vikas Khanchandani arrested, remanded to Mumbai Police custody till December 15
New Delhi: On Sunday, Mumbai police arrested Republic TV CEO Vikas Khanchandani in the TRP rigging scam. A Mumbai court has remanded Khanchandani for two days police custody. This is the thirteenth arrest in the case.
Earlier this week Khanchandani and CFO Sivasubramanian Sundaram moved sessions court, Mumbai seeking anticipatory bail in the fake TRP scam case registered by the Mumbai police apprehending.
The police submitted before the court that Republic network in order to increase its TRP (TRP) paid Rs 15 lakhs monthly to ensure that more viewers watch their channels – Republic TV (English) and Republic Bharat (Hindi).
Media reports say that police found the alleged amount in possession of Abhishek Kolawade, accused of taking money from the channel for carrying out activities to increase the viewership and thereby the TRPs of the channel.
After interrogating ARG Outlier AVP Ghanshyam Singh, the police concluded that Singh was allegedly being directed to carry out illegal activities to increase TRPs for their channel by Republic TV COO Priya Mukherjee, who in turn was being instructed by Khanchandani.
The remand order for Khanchandani was sought on the above points. His counsel has argued that Khanchandi was targeted because Arnab Goswami is having a dispute with the Maharashtra government for several reasons. It was also pointed out that the arrest was deliberately done on Sunday, a day before his anticipatory bail application was listed for hearing before the Mumbai sessions court, so as to defeat his anticipatory bail application.
News Broadcasters Federation has condemned the arrest and pointed out that it is highly alarming on the law and order situation in the state. It has urged the Maharashtra government to follow the law of the land. It urged PMO to immediately set-up and independent neutral national agency to investigate any allegations of professional misconduct by journalists, executives, and owners of the media company, in order to prevent harassment
https://twitter.com/TweetsNbf/status/1338121311646670848
Mumbai Police unearthed the TRP scam on 8 October after rating agency Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) filed a complaint through Hansa Research Group, alleging that certain television channels were rigging TRP numbers. Hansa had been tasked with installing barometers, which record viewership data at sample households.
Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh then claimed that Republic TV and two Marathi channels Box Cinema and Fakt Marathi- were involved in manipulating TRPs.
Since then several arrests have been done in the case and there has been a lot of developments both within and outside of the courtroom.
News Broadcasting
UDF poised to return to power in Kerala, says Manorama-CVoter survey
Massive opinion poll projects shift in Kerala politics ahead of 2026 Assembly elections.
MUMBAI: The winds of change appear to be blowing through Kerala’s political landscape and this time, they seem to favour the United Democratic Front. A comprehensive mega opinion survey conducted by Manorama News in partnership with CVoter projects a potential comeback for the UDF in the upcoming Kerala Legislative Assembly Elections 2026. The survey, covering all 140 constituencies with a massive sample size of nearly 90,000 respondents, predicts the UDF could win between 69 and 81 seats.
The ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) is expected to secure 57 to 69 seats, a significant drop from the 99 seats it won in the 2021 elections. This would mean the LDF losing 30 to 42 of its sitting seats. Meanwhile, the National Democratic Alliance (NDA), which drew a blank in 2021, is projected to open its account with 1 to 5 seats.
Region-wise, the UDF is expected to make strong gains in Malabar, winning 25 to 34 out of 48 seats, and in Central Kerala, where it could bag 29 to 33 out of 53 seats. In South Kerala, the LDF is likely to retain an edge with 21 to 25 seats, while the UDF may improve to 12 to 16 seats. The NDA could pick up 1 to 3 seats in the southern region.
The survey was conducted between 14 and 26 March 2026, with additional tracker and snap polls carried out from December 2025 to March 2026. A total of 89,693 respondents participated, ensuring representation across all demographics and social segments.
Manorama News has a strong track record of accuracy, with its previous projections closely matching the actual results of the 2019 and 2024 Lok Sabha elections as well as the 2021 Kerala Assembly polls.
In Kerala’s famously fierce political battles, this survey suggests the pendulum may be swinging back. Whether the final verdict matches these numbers or throws up another surprise, one thing is clear, the 2026 Assembly elections are shaping up to be one of the most keenly watched contests in the state’s history.
