The quest for vendetta against Arnab Goswami

It is no one’s argument that wrongdoing must not be investigated, however, when it is done so in a case and on charges that have been discredited in the highest court of the land, the pursuit of those charges indicates the political vendetta that inspires the investigation.

On 4 November 2020, Arnab Goswami, Editor-in-chief, Republic News Network, sat down for an analysis of the American elections as the voting commenced. The American election this past November was keenly watched the world over: would the mercurial Donald Trump be hoisted at the hustings by a sober Joe Biden? With his panel ready, it was to be yet another day at work for the famous anchor, whose steady rise in the media landscape from reporter to media entrepreneur has been nothing short of remarkable. In this climb, Arnab has made friends and enemies, has polarised opinions, been the envy of contemporaries and is presently the biggest media star. He chooses to be an outsider to the system, setting up offices in Mumbai and making much of his rejection of establishment media. In many ways, the triumph of his network in Hindi and English, both number one in their categories, has made him the establishment, a title he will be insulted by because he still sees himself as the challenger. It was in this context that the clash between the present Maharashtra government and Arnab was triggered.

On the morning of the American election result, Goswami was arrested from his residence. The arrest was recorded and put live almost immediately and the scenes were dramatic, indicative of rough handling and assault. Outside his residence was a security build-up that was reminiscent of the kind required for high-value target takedowns, like terrorists. Intriguingly, some media competitors were already at the site to report the arrest live, signalling that they had been tipped off. It was a well-co-ordinated spectacle, meant for the eyes of the nation and public humiliation. This was the final straw in a pitched battle of words between Arnab and the ruling dispensation in Maharashtra. In the recent past, FIRS had been filed, there were multiple rounds of questioning, an assault when Arnab was driving home with his wife by alleged political operatives of the Congress and more recently 1,000 FIRS against Republic employees, before Goswami’s arrest. It was clear that the Maharashtra government was digging deep into Arnab’s business to get to him. It is to his credit that having no actionable dirt on him, despite the investigations, the government had to re-open a case where the closure report had already been filed in April 2019. Followed by an arrest that has been discredited by the Supreme Court and called illegal by the CJM.

The case in question was related to the suicide of Mumbai-based architect Anvay Naik. On 16 April 2019, the closure report for the said case was filed before the Chief Judicial Magistrate in Raigad. When Arnab approached the Alibaug Court post his illegal arrest, the court held that there was no strong reason from the prosecution displaying that the previous investigation was incomplete or there were shortcomings. The Remand Report explicitly stated that “the arrest of the accused itself is illegal”. Since there was no evidence presented by the prosecution to require police custody, the court went to the extent of declaring the police custody illegal and further sent Arnab for a 14-day judicial custody.

Now although it is legal for the police to reopen a case when a closure report has been filed, there must be prima facie evidence to arrest someone in the case. Without any investigative or factual basis, an arrest cannot be made. Hence, when the case was heard in the Supreme Court, they said “Prima facie evaluation of the FIR does not establish the ingredients of the offence of abetment of suicide under Section 306 of the IPC. Prima facie, on the application of the test which has been laid down by this Court in a consistent line of authority which has been noted above, it cannot be said that the appellant was guilty of having abetted the suicide within the meaning of Section 306 of the IPC.” In plain speak, this means that there was no actual evidence to indicate or fulfil the ingredients of the section thus slapped on Arnab. It was now established based on the apex court and CJM’S observations that the actions against Goswami were motivated by political vendetta paired with the unrestrained use of government machinery, which included transferring the case to the CID by the Home Department in May 2020 and then back to the police when the prior investigation yielded no result. However, the arrest, now deemed illegal by the courts, has not dulled the Maharashtra government’s quest for vendetta. In November, post-goswami’s release after eight days spent in two jails, the Home Minister of the state announced that a charge sheet would be filed in the case.

Goswami elicits fierce loyalty and criticism, his kind of success rarely goes unnoticed. When he was released from jail, ordinary citizens lined the streets outside the jail and those from a neighbouring building held up their cell phone torches, shining a light. Goswami, mildmannered and reticent in person, uncharacteristically stood out of the sunroof in his car and pumped his fists in the air, saying “Bharat Mata ki Jai” as the crowd answered back with their own cheer. It was a moment unscripted and spontaneous, and frankly, unlike anything one has seen involving a media professional, especially at a time when there is deep suspicion about the mainstream media. Part of his triumph may be attributed to wearing his positions on his sleeve, there is no bias cloaked in secrecy to be exposed later, it is all in your face. It’s riskier because it puts you in the crosshairs of the government, but it enshrines you in the public’s affection. This affection was evident when he was released from jail.

I was at Arnab’s 9 pm debate post his release and was quick to sound a note of caution that this was not over, the Maharashtra Home Minister’s statement validates that concern. It is no one’s argument that wrongdoing must not be investigated, however, when it is done so in a case and on charges that have been discredited in the highest court of the land, the pursuit of those charges indicates the political vendetta that inspires the investigation. There is an argument that can be made for the freedom of the press but if one were to set aside such lofty considerations, and view this case based only on its merits and the observations of the court, the pursuance of this line of harassment rings warning bells for all citizens. The message is implicit and it just doesn’t apply to Arnab, the distance between you and a jail cell can be covered in minutes by a government that doesn’t like you and on charges that fail the scrutiny of the top court. We should all be worried.

Legal research by Medhavi Mishra.