Sun TV's CEO Praveen Chathangathodi arrested over sexual harassment case

In another blow to the image of the beleaguered Sun Group, a top executive of the company was arrested on Friday in Chennai for the alleged sexual harassment of a former woman employee.

Sun TV's chief operating officer Praveen Chathangathodi was arrested from his residence on Friday morning after questioning by the police.

"The victim had furnished evidence including voice and data recordings of conversations and the matter is under investigation," a senior police official said.

Workplace woes

The woman, who quit her job five months ago, held a senior position in the programming section of Surya TV, the Malayalam Channel of Sun Network the flagship media group run by Kalanithi Maran, the brother of DMK leader Dayanidhi Maran.

This is the second high profile case of alleged sexual harassment in the group. A Sun TV news editor was arrested earlier this year on a similar complaint lodged by an anchor of the leading Tamil channel.

"As the complainant refused to put up with his harassment, Chathangathodi transferred her to Kochi against her wishes, a police official said.

"He has allegedly been harassing the woman for the past two years," a senior Central crime branch official said.

The image of the Sun Group has already been battered with its low cost airline Spicejet running into financial problems.

Billionaire Kalanithi Maran appears to have a made a mess of running airline which is known to have made a profit in the past. SpiceJet, India's second largest budget airline, had reported its fifth straight quarterly loss in the three months ended 30 September despite a decline in jet fuel prices.

The airline reported Rs 310.4 crore loss in the September quarter, compared with a Rs 559.49 crore loss in the yearago period. Spicejet requires at least $300 million (Rs 1,900 crore) to stabilise and recover, according to an estimate by aviation consultancy services firm CAPA.

However, the parent company claims it does not have enough liquid funds to revive the airline.

The airline had to face the embarrassment of not being able to pay its fuel bills and airport fees and several flights had to be cancelled.

The airline has now managed to get some funds from former promoter Ajay Singh who appears to be ready to buy back the airline from the Marans who are reported to be keen to exit.

The Maran brothers are also being investigated for alleged money laundering in the 2G spectrum case and have been questioned by the Enforcement Directorate.