MUMBAI: Bennett, Coleman & Co has registered a complaint against Arnab Goswami, editor and founder of Republic TV, and reporter Prema Sridevi for infringing its copyright -- both former employees of the English news channel Times Now.

BCCL has filed the complaint with the Azad Maidan Police Station in Mumbai under sections 378, with sections 379, 403, 405, with sections 406, 409, 411, 414 and 418 of the Indian Penal Code, besides Section 66-B, 72 and 72-A of the IT Act, 2000, ET has quoted sources as saying. The complaint alleges commission of offences of criminal breach of trust, theft, misappropriation of property and infringement of the intellectual properties of of BCCL by making use of the same on Republic TV on multiple occasions on 6 May and 8 May this year.

On the first day of Republic TV's launch, it telecast what it termed as an ‘expose’ on Lalu Prasad in which audio tapes containing telephone conversations between the former chief minister of Bihar and gangster Shahabuddin, allegedly while the latter was in prison, were played

Another news story was broadcast on Republic TV on 8 May, in which audio tapes of telephone talks between Sridevi (former news reporter of Times Now) and the Sunanda Pushkar (the deceased wife of the Congress leader Shashi Tharoor) and their house-help Narayan was aired.

Both these stories had shown material that was procured while both Sridevi and Goswami were in the employment of Times Now, according to the complaint. The ET report stated BCCL has confirmed filing the complaint against Goswami and Sridevi.