Suresh Chavhanke is an Indian journalist who is the current

chairman The chair, also chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the gro ...

managing director A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a chief executive or managing director, is the top-ranking corporate officer charged with the management of an organization, usually a company or a nonprofit organization. CEOs find roles in variou ...

and the

editor-in-chief An editor-in-chief (EIC), also known as lead editor or chief editor, is a publication's editorial leader who has final responsibility for its operations and policies. The editor-in-chief heads all departments of the organization and is held accoun ...

Sudarshan News Sudarshan News is an Indian right-wing news channel. It was founded in 2005 by Suresh Chavhanke, the chairman and editor-in-chief. Chavhanke is a long-term member of the Hindutva organisation Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), and had worked as ...

(Sudarshan TV Channel Limited), a

Hindutva Hindutva (; ) is a Far-right politics, far-right political ideology encompassing the cultural justification of Hindu nationalism and the belief in establishing Hindu hegemony within India. The political ideology was formulated by Vinayak Da ...

-aligned television channel. He is the anchor of its TV show ''Bindas Bol''.

Early life and career

Suresh Chavhanke is a member of

Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS,, ) is an Indian right-wing politics, right-wing, Hindutva, Hindu nationalist volunteer paramilitary organisation. It is the progenitor and leader of a large body of organisations called the Sangh Parivar ( ...

since the age of 3 years when he started attending its ceremonies. As a member of RSS, he had worked as a reporter of pro-RSS newspaper ''

Tarun Bharat ''Tarun Bharat'' ("Young India") is a Marathi newspaper based in Belagavi, India. It is the seventh-largest-selling Marathi daily newspaper in the country. The paper has eight editions from locations in North Karnataka (Belagavi), Southern Mah ...

''. He held several posts in RSS before becoming a full-time reporter. He launched Sudarshan News channel in 2005 in

Pune Pune ( ; , ISO 15919, ISO: ), previously spelled in English as Poona (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name until 1978), is a city in the state of Maharashtra in the Deccan Plateau, Deccan plateau in Western ...

Maharashtra Maharashtra () is a state in the western peninsular region of India occupying a substantial portion of the Deccan Plateau. It is bordered by the Arabian Sea to the west, the Indian states of Karnataka and Goa to the south, Telangana to th ...

and later shifted it to

Noida Noida (), short for New Okhla Industrial Development Authority (ISO: ), is a city located in Gautam Buddha Nagar district of the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. As per provisional reports of Census of India, the population of Noida in 2011 was ...

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh ( ; UP) is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. With over 241 million inhabitants, it is the List of states and union territories of India by population, most populated state in In ...

. He is currently the chairman, managing director and editor-in-chief of Sudarshan News. He hosts the show ''Bindas Bol''.

Legal issues and controversies

An FIR was lodged with Noida Police against Suresh Chavhanke for allegedly raping a former employee of his channel

in November 2016. He was booked by the police under 11 sections of the

IPC IPC may refer to: Businesses and organizations Arts and media * Intellectual Property Committee, a coalition of US corporations with intellectual property interests * International Panorama Council, an international network of specialists in ...

; police had investigated the case but the charges were not substantiated as per the closure report filed by the police in January 2017. Yati Narsinghanand Saraswati, convener of the Akhil Bhartiya Sant Parishad, alleged that complainant was under influence of "

jihadist Jihadism is a neologism for modern, armed militant Political aspects of Islam, Islamic movements that seek to Islamic state, establish states based on Islamic principles. In a narrower sense, it refers to the belief that armed confrontation ...

" elements and claimed that they have solid proofs but can't disclose to media. Several organisations alleged that he was victimised because he stood up for "Hindu cause". In April 2017, Chavhanke was booked and later arrested for inciting communal hatred between the Hindus and Muslimsts of

had registerecomplaint against ''Bindas Bol'', hosted by Chavhanke and had alleged that it aired programmes that promoted communal disharmony and hostility between religious groups. Subsequently, Chavhanke was booked under various IPC sections and section 16 of the Cable Television Network (Regulation) Act, 1955 was also invoked. After being released on

bail Bail is a set of pre-trial restrictions that are imposed on a suspect to ensure that they will not hamper the judicial process. Court bail may be offered to secure the conditional release of a defendant with the promise to appear in court when ...

, he claimed that it was an attempt to "suppress and intimidate media". In 2018, he started a Bharat Bachav rally allegedly to give a message on

population control Population control is the practice of artificially maintaining the size of any population. It simply refers to the act of limiting the size of an animal population so that it remains manageable, as opposed to the act of protecting a species from ...

. The rally was interrupted by

Hyderabad Police Hyderabad City Police is the local law enforcement agency for the city of Hyderabad, Telangana and is headed by the Commissioner of Police. The city police traces its origins to 1847 under Hyderabad State. History 1847–1948 The Nizam of Hydera ...

citing law and order problems created by the event. In September 2020, Bindas Bol hosted by Chavhanke, aired a conspiracy termed " UPSC Jihad." The show claimed that Muslims were systematically "infiltrating" India's civil services, suggesting that Muslim candidates received undue advantages in the Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) examinations. These assertions were based on misleading data and unverified claims, including allegations of preferential treatment and undue benefits for Muslim aspirants. The program faced widespread condemnation for promoting communal disharmony and spreading

misinformation Misinformation is incorrect or misleading information. Misinformation and disinformation are not interchangeable terms: misinformation can exist with or without specific malicious intent, whereas disinformation is distinct in that the information ...

. Critics highlighted that the content was offensive and had the potential to promote communal attitudes. In response, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting issued a caution to Sudarshan News, advising the channel to be more careful in the future and warning of stricter penal action in case of further violations. 91 retired Civil servants filed case against him claiming that his programme contains derogatory statements about the Muslim community and was divisive in nature, and the programme was paused by

Allahabad High Court Allahabad High Court, officially known as High Court of Judicature at Allahabad, is the high court based in the city of Prayagraj, formerly known as Allahabad, that has jurisdiction over the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It was established o ...

on 1 September 2020. The

Supreme Court of India The Supreme Court of India is the supreme judiciary of India, judicial authority and the supreme court, highest court of the Republic of India. It is the final Appellate court, court of appeal for all civil and criminal cases in India. It also ...

also intervened, expressing concerns over the show's content and temporarily restraining the channel from airing further episodes. The court described the program as "insidious" and emphasized the need to balance

freedom of the press Freedom of the press or freedom of the media is the fundamental principle that communication and expression through various media, including printed and electronic Media (communication), media, especially publication, published materials, shoul ...

with the responsibility to prevent communal discord. In December 2021, Suresh Chavhanke, administered an oath at a Hindu Yuva Vahini event in

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, but spread chiefly to the west, or beyond its Bank (geography ...

, urging attendees to "fight," "die," and "kill if required" to establish a Hindu nation. This event sparked widespread criticism, with multiple complaints filed against him for hate speech and inciting communal tensions. Initially, the

Delhi Police The Delhi Police (DP) is the law enforcement agency for the National Capital Territory of Delhi. Delhi Police falls under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Home Affairs, Government of India. In 2024, the sanctioned strength of Delhi Police w ...

claimed that no hate speech occurred, but after

Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

intervention, they registered an

FIR Firs are evergreen coniferous trees belonging to the genus ''Abies'' () in the family Pinaceae. There are approximately 48–65 extant species, found on mountains throughout much of North and Central America, Eurasia, and North Africa. The genu ...

in May 2022. The police later informed the court that the investigation was in an advanced stage, awaiting a forensic voice sample analysis. Despite the legal action, Chavhanke has continued to defend his speech, claiming it was an expression of his ideological beliefs. Supreme Court of India criticized the delay in action and directed the Delhi Police to provide a more comprehensive affidavit on the matter. The case remains under investigation, with legal proceedings ongoing.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chavhanke, Suresh Indian broadcasters 1972 births Living people Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh members People from Shirdi Marathi people 21st-century Indian businesspeople Indian television company founders Indian television executives Indian television journalists Indian television news anchors Indian television presenters Hindu nationalists Far-right politics in India Indian newspaper journalists Journalists from Maharashtra Businesspeople from Pune Indian reporters and correspondents People from Noida