The Bombay High Court on Wednesday ordered that the Mumbai Police should give three days prior notice if they want to arrest Republic TV Editor-in-Chief Arnab Goswami in the TRP scam case. The police told the court that it will complete the probe against Republic TV within three months.
A division bench of Justice S S Shinde and Justice Manish Pitale was hearing a plea filed by ARG Outlier Media — which runs Republic TV and other channels — and Goswami, challenging the police probe, FIR, court proceedings and charge sheets while seeking the transfer of the same to the Central Bureau of Investigation or any other independent agency.
Goswami’s counsel on Tuesday had told the court that the FIR and the charge sheets filed by Mumbai Police were solely intended to target his client for his earlier reportage against the Maharashtra government. Senior counsel Ashok Mundargi, appearing for ARG Outlier Media, said that while other channels had also been named, the police were only interrogating Republic TV employees and the channel’s role in the case. He added that though the Mumbai Police had been investigating for nearly four months, it has been unable to get any evidence to book the channel or Goswami.
The bench had said that the investigation into the case cannot go on forever and the investigating agency must stop at some stage. The HC, while admitting the petition by ARG Outlier, noted in the order, “We direct that in case the investigating officer desires to summon the petitioner Goswami for inquiry/investigation, he shall give clear notice of 3 days (excluding holidays) to him.” The court added, “In case, such notice/summons is received by the Goswami, as assured by him to this Court and recorded in the order dated October 19, 2020, he shall appear and co-operate with the inquiry before the concerned investigating officer.”
The court noted that the investigation cannot be stayed right now as there was no clarity on who is the accused and who is not.
