Mumbai Police make sixth arrest in fake TRP racket case

The Crime Branch of Mumbai Police on Friday made a sixth arrest in the fake Television Rating Points (TRP) racket case, an official said.

Umesh Mishra, a resident of suburban Andheri, was nabbed by a crime branch team from Virar area, he said.

Mishra allegedly paid bribes to the people at whose houses meters collecting viewership data were installed to watch a particular news channel, the official said.

The alleged fake TRP scam came to light when ratings agency Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) filed a complaint with the police through Hansa Research Group, alleging that certain channels were rigging TRP numbers to lure advertisers.

It was alleged that some families at whose houses metres for collecting data of viewership were installed were bribed to tune into a particular channel.

Last week, Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh had claimed that Republic TV and two Marathi channels - Box Cinema and Fakt Marathi -- manipulated TRP for better advertisement revenue. Republic TV rubbished Singh's claims.