Rajdeep Sardesai issued a public apology to Ajit Tokas, a former BJP ward councillor, for raising false corruption allegations against him in 2011.
Sardesai had alleged that Tokas had accepted bribes to permit unauthorised constructions in Delhi's Munirka ward.
This was based on the findings of a sting operation by two news agencies. The Lokayukta cleared Tokas of the charge in 2012.
Rajdeep Sardesai, prime-time host of India Today, issued a public apology on Monday, 13 October 2025, to Ajit Tokas, a former BJP ward councillor, for raising false corruption allegations against him in 2011.
In it prime-time segment, India Today had claimed that Tokas, then a councillor from Munirka, had accepted bribes to permit unauthorised constructions in his ward. He was subsequently suspended from the BJP. Delhi Lokayukta took suo moto cognizance of the incident and launched an investigation into the matter.
In 2012, the allegations were proven to be false and Tokas was cleared of the charges.
14 years later, Sardesai uploaded a public clarification and apology for the incident on social media.
“There is no evidence on record to substantiate that Mr. Tokas ever demanded money in relation to any project,” the statement read. Sardesai apologised for the “Social and Political reputational harm caused by the airing of the said programme.”
The statement went on to clarify that the investigation in question had been conducted by an external agency, and that Sardesai was only responsible for anchoring the programme based on its findings.
In 2011, IBN7 and Cobra Post, two news agencies, launched a sting operation in Delhi, which showed eight MCD councillors demanding bribes of ₹4 -10 lakh to allow illegal constructions in their respective wards. The report named two Congress councillors and six BJP councillors, including Tokas, who were summarily removed from their parties.
Based on these findings, India Today aired two episodes – on 6 November and 7 December 2011 – under its programme ‘Delhi’s Double Agents’. In the episodes, Sardesai directly named Tokas.
Later that month, the Lokayukta issued notices to the accused councillors and launched a probe into the matter. After due adjudication in March 2012, the Lokayukta held that Tokas had “rejected multiple offers of gratification,” clearing him of the charge.
In a later order from July that year, the organisation clarified that though there was “no demand for illegal gratification,” Tokas had knowingly engaged in discussions regarding unauthorized construction. The order said that Tokas had gone so far as to consider “getting a building declared dangerous, having it demolished and raising new desired construction.” It recommended a ‘Caution’ to be administered against him.
Four years later, in 2016, Tokas took Sardesai to court over the incident, though the case eventually fizzled out.
Following Sardesai's apology, critics and BJP leaders launched an attack against him, calling him a “serial fake news peddler.” Amit Malviya, National Convener of the BJP’s IT Cell, replied to the apology highlighting previous incidents when Sardesai had to apologise for spreading misinformation.
Most recently, in 2021, Sardesai was removed from his prime-time slot for two weeks and docked a month’s salary for wrongly accusing Delhi Police of shooting a protesting farmer who had died in an accident. [Rh/DS]
