Raghav_Bahl

Raghav Bahl

Raghav Bahl

Indian businessman, founder of Newtwork18

Raghav Bahl is an Indian businessman, a serial entrepreneur, and an investor best known for his past ownership of several television channels, including TV18 India. He was the Founding/Controlling shareholder & managing director of Network18 Group, a media group that he started in 1993 and grew into one of the largest collection of media properties in India.[1]

Quick Facts Alma mater, Occupation ...

At its peak, the group controlled by Raghav Bahl included media and internet-based media outlets such as in.com, IBNLive.com, Moneycontrol.com, Firstpost.com, Cricketnext, Homeshop18, bookmyshow.com, Forbes India, TV channels such as Colors and some in partnership with international media groups such as NBC TV18, CNN-IBN, IBN7, MTV, and CNBC Awaaz.[1][2]

By late 2011, according to a LiveMint article, Bahl's media group had a large debt, was running in loss and banks were unwilling to lend the group additional capital.[1] Bahl's group sought capital from the Reliance Industries Ltd in 2012, and two years later Reliance took over the media empire and Bahl left the Network18 group on 29 May 2014.[1][2][3]

After departing from the Network18 group, Bahl co-founded Quintillion Media Pvt Ltd with his wife Ritu Kapur. Currently, Bahl is the promoter of Quint Digital Media Limited[4] and his media group controls Thequint.com.[5][6] Bahl entered a joint venture agreement with Bloomberg L.P. to launch BloombergQuint in 2016,[7] the equity partnership ended in 2022.[8]

Early life

He received his schooling from St. Xavier's School, Delhi. He graduated in Economics Honors from St. Stephens College, and then did a Masters in Business Administration from the Faculty of Management Studies.[9]

His sister, Vandana Malik, also served in various positions under the Network18 Group. Her daughter and Bahl's niece, Avantika Malik, was married to Bollywood actor Imran Khan.[10]

Career

He began his career as a management consultant with A.F. Ferguson & Co, followed by a stint with American Express Bank, and later moved on to media. Raghav has over 22 years experience in television and journalism.[11]

He started his career in media in 1985 as a Correspondent and Anchorperson for Doordarshan. He was the Anchorperson and Production Consultant for India's first monthly video news magazine, Newstrack, produced by the India Today group. From 1991 to 1993, he was the Executive Director of Business India Television and produced the Business India Show and Business A.M. on Doordarshan.[citation needed]

In 1999, he launched CNBC-TV18. He was responsible for directing most of the work of TV18 and channels like CNBC-Awaaz, Nickelodeon and Colors. Raghav served as the managing director of TV18 Group till July 2014.

By attracting media talent such as Rajdeep Sardesai and Sameer Manchanda, Bahl built an audience for his media properties.

By late 2011, Bahl's media group had amassed a large debt, was running in loss and banks were unwilling to lend the group additional capital.[1] Bahl's group sought capital from the Reliance Industries Ltd in 2012.[1] Bahl then brought the losses in his group under control, laid off hundreds of employees in his media group, closed or trimmed many of the properties within the group, according to the LiveMint.[1][12]

Two years later, in 2014, under the terms of this financing agreement, Reliance took over the Network18 group. With the change in ownership, Bahl left the Network18 Group in 2014.[1]

After leaving the Network18 Group, he founded Quintillion Media, a digital startup that publishes The Quint, along with his wife Ritu Kapur on 8 July 2014.

Writing

He has authored three books:

  • Super Power? The Amazing Race Between China's Hare and India's Tortoise (Penguin, 2012)
  • SuperEconomies: America, India, China, and the Future of the World (Penguin, 2016)
  • Super Century: What India Must Do to Rise by 2050 (Penguin, 2019)

Awards

Controversy

  • The Income tax department had raided Bahl's premises in Noida in October 2018 on charges of "bogus long term capital gains (LTCG) received by various beneficiaries" and other charges of tax evasion.[15] Bahl provided his statement in October 2018 on the baseless allegations/ charges pursuant to which the IT raids were conducted.[16]
  • Bahl had allegedly made ₹1.14 billion out of an investment of ₹30.3 million made in a penny stock company called PMC Fincorp that was promoted by a certain Raj Kumar Modi in 2011. Raj Kumar Modi is managing director of PMC Fincorp.[17] In this regard, Bahl had filed a settlement application with the Securities and Exchange Board of India in relation to the alleged violation of the applicable SEBI regulations. In accordance with the applicable regulatory framework, Bahl vide order dated July 13, 2021, without admitting the findings of SEBI, settled the proceedings under the SEBI (Settlement Proceedings) Regulations, 2018.[18]
  • ED initiated a preliminary inquiry against Bahl regarding a case of alleged Money Laundering.[19] Bahl vide letter dated June 8, 2019 to Mrs. Nirmala Sitharaman, the Finance Minister of India, had clarified that the full details in relation to the preliminary inquiry in the alleged Money Laundering case had been duly submitted to the authorities and that there was no wrong doing on his part.[20][21]
  • Bahl had filed a petition with the Delhi High Court [W.P.(CRL) 2392/2021 & CRL.M.A. 19314-19316/2021] seeking quashing of the inquiry being undertaken by the ED. The Delhi High Court vide its order dated December 3, 2021 noted that “it has been submitted on behalf of the petitioner that in as much as the predicate offence does not exist, the proceedings in relation to the investigation being conducted by the Enforcement of Directorate cannot continue”. Mukul Rohatgi appearing on behalf of Bahl submitted, “I have told them that black money proceedings are pending in the Supreme Court and are likely to be quashed now in view of the acceptance by the IT Department itself. They are now saying you give me material of your businesses from 2005 which have nothing to do with this issue. If the predicate offence itself does not subsist anymore because 2018-19 return has been fully accepted, why should this [ED] proceeding go on when I have given the full replies”.[22]
  • The Delhi High Court [W.P.(CRL) 2392/2021, CRL.M.A. 19314/2021, CRL.M.A. 14701/2022, CRL.M.A. 25294/2022, CRL.M.A. 14700/2022] vide its order dated January 23, 2023 inter alia held that "the petitioner is seeking quashing of ECIR and according to the Supreme Court in ‘Kirit Shrimankar vs U.O.I’ in W.P.(Crl) 109/2013 has held that a writ remedy on account of issuance of summons at the stage of investigation/enquiry is highly premature”. Further, the Delhi High Court vide the order dated January 23, 2023 held that “whether there is generation of proceeds of crime or not is being investigated and for the aforesaid reasons, the petition as of today is premature”.[23]

References

  1. [1]
    Inside the Network18 takeover, Ashish Mishra, LiveMint (The Hindustan Times Gp), (25 Jun 2014)
  2. [2]
    Reliance Takes Over Network18: Is This The Death Of Media Independence?, Forbes, Megha Bahree (30 May 2019)
  3. [3]
    "My dream to own a newspaper is dead". The Financial Express. 30 September 2014. Retrieved 21 October 2018.
  4. [4]
    Statement showing shareholding pattern of the Promoter and Promoter Group, BSE.
  5. [5]
    [email protected], Global Initiative. "Ritu Kapur | Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism". University of Oxford. Retrieved 9 September 2018.
  6. [6]
    "The Newsmaker – Ritu Kapur". Outlook Business. Retrieved 9 September 2018.
  7. [7]
    Choudhary, Vidhi (26 January 2016). "Bloomberg said to be in talks with Raghav Bahl for joint venture". Livemint. HT Media Ltd. Retrieved 31 March 2017.
  8. [8]
    Bloomberg ends JV with Quint; to have new content licence agreement, Business Today.
  9. [9]
    "FMS alumnus and media baron writes book on next superpower". Retrieved 9 March 2010.
  10. [10]
    "Meet Imran Khan's bride". Rediff.com. 4 January 2011.
  11. [11]
    Book Review: Super Power. Daily Express. Retrieved 25 August 2014.
  12. [12]
    Reliance and right-wing politics gain a foothold in Raghav Bahl's media empire, Rahul Bhatia, The Caravan Magazine, (30 November 2013)
  13. [13]
    Sn, Vikas (16 March 2015). "Raghav Bahl's mobile-first news site the Quint goes live – ETtech". The Economic Times.
  14. [14]
    "News 24 honours Shobhana Bhartia with ISOMES Samman 2018 – News24online". Dailyhunt. Retrieved 25 November 2019.
  15. [15]
    Scroll Staff (12 October 2018). "Income Tax raids on Raghav Bahl, Quint and News Minute raise questions of media intimidation". Scroll.in. Retrieved 27 July 2020.
  16. [16]
    Statement by Raghav Bahl, Ritu Kapur & Quintillion Media Group post I-T raids, The Times of India.
  17. [17]
    Sarkar, Gaurav (22 October 2018). "Tax raids on Quint: 'I remember Ritu Kapur and Raghav Bahl got ₹100 crore converted'". Newslaundry. Retrieved 27 July 2020.
  18. [18]
    Bahl, Kapur settle case with Sebi, pay Rs 61 lakh for rule breach, Business Standard.
  19. [19]
    "ED files money laundering case against journalist Raghav Bahl". The Economic Times. Retrieved 27 July 2020.
  20. [20]
    ED files money laundering case against Raghav Bahl, The Indian Express.
  21. [21]
    ED Case: Raghav Bahl Writes to Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, The Quint.
  22. [22]
    Money laundering case against Raghav Bahl: Delhi HC seeks ED response on plea for quashing, The Indian Express.
  23. [23]
    Delhi HC Refuses to Admit Petition by Raghav Bahl for Quashing of ECIR, Calls It 'Premature', The Quint.
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