After a high voltage drama Editor-in-chief of Republic TV, Mr. Arnab Goswami was arrested from his residence in Worli in a joint operation conducted by Raigad and Mumbai police. He was produced in the Alibaug Court the same morning. The Chief Judicial Magistrate of Alibaug Court has termed his arrest as prima facie illegal. The CJM also pointed out serious lapses on the part of Raigad police. The police did not take the prior permission of the court before Arresting Mr. Goswami and neither they could establish a direct involvement of Mr. Goswami with the suicide.
To arrest a person based on circumstantial evidence the chain of circumstances should be complete. In the present case, the Prosecution failed to establish that there was enough circumstantial evidence against Mr. Goswami and it also failed to establish the reason behind Mrs. Kumud Naik’s death. The CJM questioned the version of the suicide story put forth by the Prosecution in the case.
Mr. Arnab Goswami was refused interim bail by the Bombay High Court and the court asked Goswami’s Lawyers to add Akshata Naik, wife of the deceased, to be added as a party. The Court is hearing the applications today. It will also hear a reinvestigation plea filed by the daughter of the deceased Mr. Naik.
Meanwhile, the officer, who had earlier investigated abetment to suicide case in which journalist Arnab Goswami was arrested on Wednesday by the police, will face an inquiry, the police were quoted as saying by news agency PTI. The Investigating Officer had filed a closure report, saying there was no evidence, PTI added.
The Supreme Court today issued a show-cause notice to the secretary of Maharashtra Assembly as to why Contempt of Court proceedings notice should not be initiated against him for allegedly intimidating Arnab Goswami. The Apex Court came down heavily on the Secretary and asked him to be personally present in the next hearing. The top court was hearing a plea filed by Arnab Goswami challenging a breach of privilege motion moved against him in the Maharashtra Assembly for criticizing Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray.
The Maharashtra government seems to be playing a vendetta politics against Mr. Goswami for raising the lapses on the part of the Government in SSR’s case. Palghar lynching case and more recently the TRP Scam case. He is being harassed by mounting up legal cases against him. In the meanwhile, BJP and Maharashtra government have locked their heads over his arrest.
