Ashok Jain Quits Executive Posts In All Group Firms
Media baron Ashok Jain has resigned from various group companies including the managing director's post at Bennett, Coleman and Co Ltd, publishers of The Times of India and other publications. However, he will continue as the chairman of Bennett Coleman.
Jain also applied for anticipatory bail in the Delhi sessions court on Saturday apprehending arrest by the officers of the Enforcement Directorate. The ED is investigating Jain on charges that he violated Fera regulations.
The ED is likely to move the court today against the media baron for failing to comply with the summons that it had issued earlier.
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Ashok Jain has decided to relinquish all executive posts from group companies on health grounds, including the director's post in Times Bank. The decision was taken recently at a Bennett Coleman board meeting. Instead of being the chairman-cum-managing director of Bennett Coleman, he will only be the company's chairman, a company spokesperson told Business Standard yesterday.
While seeking anticipatory bail, Jain urged the court to direct the ED to interrogate him in hospital with proper medical backup so as to deal with any emergent medical situations that may arise during the course of interrogation.
According to the petition filed before the Delhi sessions court, Jain apprehends arrest by ED for non-bailable offences. The applicant (Ashok Jain) states that firstly he has not committed any offence, secondly the applicant has always been ready and willing to co-operate, the petition stated. While terming raids on Jain's house as illegal, the petition also states that the ED has been coercing relatives and acquaintances of Jain by freely using the threat of arrest.Thus the applicant genuinely apprehends that there is a deep-rooted conspiracy to arrest him on false, trumped-up charges which have no basis at all and, in fact, the charges never existed in the first place, states the petition.
The petition enumerates the various diseases which Ashok Jain is suffering from and for which he had to go abroad for treatment.