Bombay HC likely to hear Arnab Goswami’s plea against arrest today – Times Now

Mumbai: The Bombay High Court is likely to hear the bail plea over Republic TV editor-in-chief Arnab Goswami’s arrest in a 2018 ‘abetment to suicide’ case on Thursday. Goswami was arrested by the Mumbai Police from his residence in the city in the early hours of Wednesday. 

He was produced before the Alibag district magistrate court along with the two other accused Feroz Shaikh and Nitesh Darda late Wednesday. The court sent Goswami to judicial custody of 14 days till November 18.

The journalist’s lawyers Aabad Ponda and Gaurav Parkar said that they moved a plea with the Alibag court. “The court asked the police to file their reply and posted it for hearing tomorrow,” advocate Ponda said.

Goswami has been booked under Sections 306 (abetment of suicide) and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code in the suicide case of 53-year-old interior designer Anvay Naik. According to the police, Naik had left behind a suicide note naming three people – Goswami, Feroz Shaikh of IcastX and Nitesh Sarda of Smartworks.

Naik’s wife, Akshata Naik, had told the cops that her husband was under financial stress after his dues of Rs 83 lakh were not paid by Republic TV. Naik was contracted to carry out interior designing work for the channel in 2016.  

Another FIR was filed against Goswami, his wife, son and two others for deterring public servant from discharge of duty and destroying public property. As per the Mumbai Police, when police went to arrest the Republic TV editor, not only he and his family disrupted the cops from doing their duty but they also tore a paper. 

The FIR was filed at NM Joshi Marg Police Station under the Sections – IPC 353- Assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty, IPC 504- Intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace, IPC 506- Punishment for criminal intimidation and IPC- 34-  Common intention and public property act.