By Raju Vernekar
Mumbai, Nov 4:
Republic TV’s Arnab Goswami was arrested in a two-year-old suicide case of an interior designer-Anvay Naik, by the local crime branch of Raigad and Goswami was picked up from his residence in Worli in South Mumbai early today morning .
Naik (53) who was found dead at the first floor of his farm house in Alibaug, had left a suicide note accusing Goswami, Feroze Shaikh of “icastX/Skmedia” and Neetish Sarda of Smartworks for not paying Rs.5.40 crore for interior work, due to which his firm-Concorde Designs Private Limited suffered severe losses. Goswani alone owed him around Rs.84 lakh, the note alleged.
The case was reopened after Naik’s daughter Adnya, met Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh. In May, Deshmukh had announced that the suicide was being reinvestigated based on a fresh complaint by Adnya. He had also said that Adnya believed the Alibaug police did not investigate the Republic TV’s properly for non-payment of dues, which, she claimed, drove her father and grandmother to commit suicide in May 2018.
The police had sent notices to Goswami seeking his version in the case, but he did not respond. Besides when the notice about his impeding arrest was delivered to his residence, his wife received the notice but tore it in front of the policeman. As such Goswami was taken into custody, a police officer said.
The offences registered against Goswami include Linking migrants’ agitation outside Bandra railway station on 14 April 2020 to a minority community and creating enmity between two communities. Criticising the Congress Chief Sonia Gandhi for “keeping silent” after two sages were lynched during lock down by mob at Palghar on 21 April 2020, since they were Hindus. He had also exhorted majority community in his program.
Besides a chapter case on charges of creating enmity between different communities through his program “Poochhata Hai Bharat” has been registered against him. If the charges are proved he may have to pay a fine of Rs 10 lakh. Another case is that of his claim of impending rebellion in Mumbai police ranks in recent program aired on 22 October 2020. The FIR stated that in a program aired at 7 PM, Republic TV claimed that discontent was brewing in police ranks who were planning to rebel against Mumbai Police Commissioner Parambir Singh).
Republic TV is also one of the five TV channels booked by police on charges of manipulating audience numbers. These numbers are crucial, since they are directly translated into advertising revenue.
However soon after Goswami was taken into custody, several ministers and leaders condemned the arrest saying it was an “attack on media” and reminded of internal emergency imposed (by late PM Indira Gandhi) in 1975.
“Congress and its allies have shamed democracy once again. Blatant misuse of state power against Republic TV and Arnab Goswami is an attack on individual freedom and the 4th pillar of democracy. It reminds us of the Emergency. This attack on free press must be and WILL BE OPPOSED,” tweeted Home Minister Amit Shah as reports emerged of Arnab Goswami’s arrest.
“We condemn the attack on press freedom in Maharashtra. This is not the way to treat the Press. This reminds us of the emergency days when the press was treated like this,” posted Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar.
