Why Is Prasar Bharati Struggling To Hold On To Its Chairpersons?

Senior bureaucrat Navneet Kumar Sehgal, on December 2, resigned from the post of Chairperson, Prasar Bharati Board. This is likely to push the public broadcaster into another spiral of uncertainty

Dec 04, 2025 · 3 min read

Prasar Bharati, Prasar Bharati Chairperson, Prasar Bharati vacancy, Navneet Kumar Sehgal, IAS

The top post of India's public broadcaster, Prasar Bharati, has fallen vacant again after senior bureaucrat Navneet Kumar Sehgal (a 1988-batch IAS officer from the Uttar Pradesh cadre) resigned from the position of the Chairperson of its Board.

Sehgal had taken over the post on March 16, 2024, and he stepped down as Chairperson of the Prasar Bharati Board on December 2, 2025, serving only about half of his tenure in the position.

The vacancy has created a sense of déjà vu as the organisation is without its top boss, yet again.

Sources stated that the absence of a full-time Chairperson of the Prasar Bharati Board is expected to create further issues for the public broadcaster, which is already dealing with problems such as old infrastructure, a collapsing workforce, and shift to digital news format. The Board's Chairman has a three-year tenure, subject to the age limit of 70 years.

Repeated Vacancies

The post of Chairperson of the Prasar Bharati Board had been lying vacant for almost four years after the tenure of A. Surya Prakash ended in February 2020, after serving two terms.

Prakash's exit led to an extraordinary four-year vacancy. During this time, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) also served as the Chair of the Board, under a temporary provision meant for emergencies, sources said.

Why This Hurts

The appointment of Navneet Sehgal was meant to resolve the issues faced by Doordarshan and All India Radio. The government's plan to reinvent the public broadcasters for the digital generation, create modern content pipelines, and the upgradation of decades-old infrastructure is likely to face a setback due to the abrupt exit.

The exit of Sehgal seems likely to push the public broadcaster into another spiral of uncertainty, if a new appointment is not made soon.

What Is Prasar Bharati

The public broadcaster is an autonomous statutory body established under the Prasar Bharati Act.

Operating under the aegis of Prasar Bharati, Doordarshan and Akashvani deliver comprehensive coverage of both international and domestic news. Its programming emphasises critical areas such as education, literacy, agriculture, rural development, environment, health and family welfare, and science and technology, among others.

The organisation is mandated to work for social justice and the protection of rights for the working class, minorities, tribal communities, and other vulnerable groups, besides raising awareness about women’s issues and implementing initiatives to safeguard children, the elderly, and other at-risk populations.

Appointment Of Chairman And Other Members:

The Chairman and the other Members, except the ex officio Members, the Nominated Member, and the elected Members shall be appointed by the President of India on the recommendation of a Committee comprising:

The Chairman of the Council of States, who shall be the Chairman of the Committee;
The Chairman of the Press Council of India (established under Section 4 of the Press Council Act, 1978);
One nominee of the President of India.