Yesterday, on the 4th of November, editor-in-chief of Republic TV, Arnab Goswami, was dragged, beaten and arrested by the Mumbai and Alibaug police. In the early hours of Wednesday morning, several police officers armed by assault rifles, led by encounter cop and erstwhile members of Shiv Sena, Sachin Vaze, barged into Arnab Goswami’s home and arrested him.
After that, he was taken to a police station in Alibaug and thereafter, produced in the Magistrate Court. The court, making scathing observations, sent Arnab Goswami to Judicial custody. This was seen as a victory by the lawyers since the Mumbai Police was asking for 14 days of police custody.
The observations made by the magistrate court are as follows:
- The 2018 suicide case was opened by the police without sanction from the court.
- Chief Judicial Magistrate observed that there was no connection in the chain of suicide in the case in which Arnab was arrested, which was earlier closed in 2018 and now reopened, and Arnab Goswami’s role.
- The CJM also observed that there is no ‘justifiable ground’ for the police custody sought as he pronounced the judgment.
The quarantine centre in which Arnab Goswami is lodged after judicial custody
After the Magistrate Court in Alibaug granted Judicial custody of Arnab Goswami, he has been lodged in a quarantine centre in the area.
Lodged in a room, Arnab Goswami has been lodged here for 14 days, per the magistrate.
However, after the High Court refused to grant interim relief to Arnab Goswami today, the hearing has been postponed to tomorrow, where the court will hear the plea of Goswami’s lawyers to grant him relief and release him from custody.
Hounding of Republic TV by Mumbai Police
In an interview given to the Editor of OpIndia Hindi, Minister of Information and Broadcasting Prakash Javadekar had criticised the action of Mumbai police against Republic TV. “What Mumbai Police is doing, no one will endorse this”, the Minister said. Mumbai police had falsely implicated Republic TV in the TRP scam on the basis of an FIR naming India Today. The police had also reportedly coerced witnesses into naming Republic TV in the TRP scam. Mumbai police had also sought details of all financial transactions of the channel ever since its inception. Now, the Mumbai police has opened another front against Arnab Goswami, which is the 2018 suicide case which was closed back then.