Union Minister Prakash Javadekar condemned the arrest of Republic TV Editor-in-Chief Arnab Goswami on Wednesday, November 4 for allegedly abetting the suicide of a 53-year-old interior designer in 2018.
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.@PIB_India @DDNewslive @republic
— Prakash Javadekar (@PrakashJavdekar) November 4, 2020
The Alibaug Police on Wednesday detained Goswami from his Mumbai residence in connection with the death of interior designer Anvay Naik and his mother Kumud Naik in 2018.
#WATCH Republic TV Editor Arnab Goswami detained and taken in a police van by Mumbai Police, earlier today pic.twitter.com/ytYAnpauG0
— ANI (@ANI) November 4, 2020
In May 2018, a 53-year-old interior designer Anvay Naik and his mother Kumud Naik died by suicide in Alibaug.
A suicide note purportedly written by Anvay was recovered in which he alleged that Goswami and two others, Feroz Shaikh and Niteish Sarda, had not paid him Rs 5.40 crore which resulted in his financial constraints.Republic TV at that time had dismissed all allegations of non-payment and attributed this to ‘malicious campaign’. The channel also claimed that all the money was paid by Republic TV to Concorde Designs.
The Alibaug police had filed a case of abetment to suicide in 2018, however, but in 2019 the case was closed by Raigad Police.
In May 2020, Maharashtra home minister Anil Deshmukh ordered a CID investigation into the case after Adnya Naik, daughter of Avnay Naik complained that the Alibaug police had not investigated the ‘non-payment of dues from Arnab Goswami’s Republic’.
Adnya Naik had complained to me that #AlibaugPolice had not investigated non-payment of dues from #ArnabGoswami’s @republic which drove her entrepreneur father & grandmom to suicide in May 2018. I’ve ordered a CID re-investigation of the case.#MaharashtraGovernmentCares
— ANIL DESHMUKH (@AnilDeshmukhNCP) May 26, 2020
Goswami’s arrest comes at a time when his channel is already under the scanner for TRP scam investigation.
