The CEO of the Censor Board, Rakesh Kumar, who was arrested on Monday by CBI for allegedly taking bribes, was produced in court today.
Kumar's lawyer, Mahesh Waswani claimed that there was a conspiracy to frame charges against his client. Waswani said, "Rakesh Kumar has been in office for only six months. In that time, he has tried to bring transparency in the system and took on corrupt agents, who tried to release movies by bribing officials. This is why he has been the target of a conspiracy."
CBI sources stated that Kumar had demanded Rs 70,000 to clear a regional movie, but Waswani refuted these statements by saying, "According to the rules of cinematographic law, the CEO alone does not have the power to issue the certificate. There is a committee that sits for that and a film can only be released if the entire committee clears the movie."
Waswani also said that the cash which was found by the CBI at Kumar's residence, amounting to around Rs 10.5 lakhs, was accounted for.