Assaulted by police during arrest, claims Goswami

Mumbai, Nov 4
Hours after he was arrested, Republic TV Editor-in-Chief Arnab Goswami was produced before a Court in Mumbai on Wednesday where he claimed that he was assaulted by police officials.
Goswami told the Court that he suffered injuries on his hand, back and finger due to the assault. Following his allegation, he was sent back to the Alibaug police station where a civil surgeon has been asked to verify the claims. Goswami’s lawyer Gaurav Parker said that he will be produced again in the Court this evening.
The news anchor was arrested on Wednesday morning from his Mumbai house in connection with the death of interior designer Anvay Naik and his mother Kumud Naik. The mother-son duo was found dead in May 2018. Anvay was found dead at his first floor residence while his mother’s body was found on the ground floor on the bed. According to a suicide note, Anvay alleged that he and his mother were forced to end their lives because he was not paid his dues amounting to Rs 5.40 crore by Arnab and two others identified as Feroz Shaikh and Nitesh Sarda - owners of two different firms.
In 2018, the Alibaug police had filed a case of abetment to suicide but in 2019 the case was closed by Raigad Police.
The arrest comes at a time when an investigation against Goswami is underway in the TRP fraud case.
While Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut asserted that due law and procedures were followed in the arrest of Goswami, many BJP leaders have come out in support of the journalist terming the incident “shameful”.
BJP chief JP Nadda drew a parallel to the Emergency in 1975, saying, “India didn’t forgive Indira Gandhi for the Emergency. India never forgave Rajiv Gandhi for his assault on press freedom. And now, India will again punish Sonia-Rahul Gandhi for their brazen and intimidating use of state power to get equal with journalists.”
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman also slammed the Maharashtra Government and questioned where were media associations now. “Is the #MVA Government in Maharashtra replaying #IndiraGandhi’s Emergency? Where are self-appointed guardians of #FoE in this #ArnabGoswami episode, which goes above & beyond ideological/political differences with a fellow journalist? No media ‘guilds’/Associations/Unions today?” she wrote on Twitter.                             Hindustan Times