Synopsis: On Wednesday, Goswami was arrested for allegedly urging the suicide of interior designer Anvay Naik from his residence in Lower Parel, Mumbai, and taken to the Alibaug police station in the neighbouring Raigad district.
Republic TV Editor-in-Chief Arnab Goswami has appealed to the Bombay High Court to challenge his “illegal arrest” in a 2018 suicide case of an interior designer and to quash the FIR filed against him by the Alibaug police, Maharashtra.
A division bench of Justices S S Shinde and M S Karnik will hear the plea.
On Wednesday, Goswami was arrested for allegedly abetting the suicide of interior designer Anvay Naik. He was arrested from his residence in Lower Parel, Mumbai, and taken to the Alibaug police station in the neighbouring Raigad district. He was subsequently brought before the magistrate’s court in Alibaug, which held him in judicial custody until 18 November.
Goswami is currently held at a local school that has been designated as an Alibaug prison COVID-19 centre. Goswami challenged his “illegal arrest” in his petition and sought an immediate order to stay the investigation of the case and also a direction for the police to release him immediately.
The plea also request to quash the FIR against him. It was alleged that the police team that barged into his house on Wednesday attacked Goswami.
In an abetment to suicide case, he was falsely and unlawfully arrested. The petition said that this is another attempt against the petitioner and his channel for being a political witch-hunt and vendetta politics. The arrest was carried out in gross violation of the petitioner’s (Goswami) fundamental rights to life and personal liberty and his dignity. When Goswami was arrested, the petitioner and his son were assaulted and were dragged into the police van, the plea mentions.
The investigation into the case was closed last year, and a closure report was filed which was approved by an order dated 16 April 2019 by the Chief Judicial Magistrate of the Alibaug court. It is surprising that a decisively closed case has been reopened with the sole intention of misusing authority, concocting evidence and arresting the petitioner in a prime facie act of revenge and vengeance for his news coverage which questioned those in power in Maharashtra.
The petition alleged that the police had documented the statements of Goswami and two senior officials of Republic TV in May 2018 and the case was closed after conducting a thorough investigation. At that time, the petitioner had provided the police with extensive records in relation to the business dealings with the company of the deceased and had cooperated fully in the matter.
It also mentioned that, as per the contract, Goswami’s company ARG Outlier Pvt. Ltd had paid over 90% of the amount due to the deceased Anvay Naiks company Concorde Designs. In July 2019, the entire balance due was transferred to Naik’s company’s bank account, but the amount was returned because the account was inoperative.
It stated that the petitioner has in the past cooperated fully with the police and will continue to do so in the future as well.