IT News
Mumbai April 27: Republic TV editor-in-chief Arnab Goswami was interrogated on Monday by the N M Joshi Marg police station in connection with multiple cases by Congress functionaries over his comments criticising Sonia Gandhi on Palghar lynching of Sadhus.
He was interrogated for over two hours in the case which has been filed by Congress leader Nitin Raut in Maharashtra and other Congress functionaries elsewhere in the country. Earlier, the Supreme Court had directed that all the charges against him would be investigated via a single FIR in Mumbai. Arnab was accompanied by his lawyer Sujay Kantawala.
Arnab upheld that truth will win, and that he has nothing to hide. The Republic TV had reported on Sunday that the Mumbai police had sent two notices within a span of 12 hours seeking to immediately interrogate him over his comments against Sonia Gandhi. Arnab accused the Maharashtra government of subjecting him to “political, malicious and motivated” charges.
In the video Arnab asked the Mumbai Police Commissioner to also investigate the midnight attack on him and his wife in the city and accused the cops of covering up the charges against the Congress party. “ I would urge the Mumbai Police to show similar alacrity and a sense of immediacy in investigating the attack on me and my wife, at 12:15 AM on 23 April, 2020”. He alleged that the attack on him was ordered on the instructions of the highest Congress leadership and that there is a lot of political prejudice involved in the matter.
In a show related to recent mob lynching of two Sadhus in Palghar in Maharashtra, Arnab had said that “Will Sonia Gandhi remain quiet? She is quiet today and she is happy that the saints have been killed where her government is ruling. She will send a report to Italy that she is getting saints killed in a place where her government is ruling and she will get praises for that”.
Arnab and his wife Sambyabrata Ray Goswami was attacked by two Youth Congress office bearers near his office at Worli in South Central Mumbai. The attackers also reportedly said that they were sent by their “higher ups”. They also threw some liquid which fell on their car. Thereafter the N M Joshi Marg police registered an FIR ( 148/2020) under sections 341, 501 read with section 34 IPC. However the FIR did not mention about the attack by the Youth Congress workers.
In a letter sent to Mumbai police on Sunday, Goswami, questioned the failure of the police to mention that the attackers were Congress youth leaders. The attackers threw some liquid, but luckily he escaped. It could have been an acid or any other inflammable material, he stated in the letter. The Congress is trying to stifle his organisation, he alleged.
The Supreme Court in its Interim Order last week has already granted three weeks of interim protection to Arnab. The protection was granted while hearing the petition filed by him, challenging the FIRs registered against him in various parts of the country. The matter was heard by two-judge bench, comprising Justices Dr D Y Chandrachud and M R Shah. The SC ruled that no coercive action can be taken against him and he can move an anticipatory bail application in three weeks.
The Mumbai police is required to ensure the safety of Arnab and his family. Congress leaders in different states had filed FIRs against him for exposing the alleged hypocrisy of Congress President Sonia Gandhi. They were also upset with Arnab referring to Sonia Gandhi by her maiden name Antonia Maino.
