Republic TV has released a dramatic video of Arnab Goswami’s arrest from his residence in Mumbai on Wednesday morning. His wife Samyabrata Goswami has said that an ‘encounter cop’ threatened the family with dire consequences. In the video, two cops were seen asking Goswami to accompany them as they repeatedly asked “Are you coming with us?”
Moments later, the team of cops pulled the Republic TV founder after he refused to accompany them voluntarily. Goswami’s wife Samyabrata Goswami was heard asking, “You physically assaulted. Why did you do that?”
#LIVE on #IndiaWithArnab | WATCH the abhorrent and shameful sequence of the assault inside Arnab Goswami’s residence; Fire in your support for #ArnabGoswami; send in videos, tweet with the hashtag and watch here – https://t.co/jghcajZuXf pic.twitter.com/a97s5sjoHV
— Republic (@republic) November 4, 2020
A cop in the video is heard addressing Goswami, “I am here to arrest you.”
In a statement, Republic TV said, “This morning the entire country witnessed the operation of a police state in Maharashtra. At 7:45 am, Republic Media Network’s Editor-in-Chief Arnab Goswami house was encircled, his home was barged into, cameras forcefully turned off, he was physically assaulted and dragged out of his home in a police van.”
Goswami was heard saying from inside the police van that the cops had beaten up his son and did not allow him to meet his in-laws. The statement by Republic TV said, “We appeal to the right-thinking citizens of India, to the Honourable Courts and the highest offices of this great country to come together, to stand against the onset of an emergency in Maharashtra under CM Uddhav Thackeray and at the hands of Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh. We urge the people of India to join this campaign. Republic Media Network will fight till the very end and we have no doubt that the truth will win. The truth cannot be assaulted. The truth cannot be arrested. The truth cannot be defeated.”
Several BJP ministers from the central government have been quick to extend their support to Goswami. They included Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar and Railway Minister Piyush Goyal.
Goswami has been arrested in a case related to abetment to the suicide of a designer, who was employed by Republic TV in the past. The Maharashtra government had decided to launch a CID probe in the abetment to suicide case against the Republic TV founder. This was confirmed by Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh. His announcement on a CID probe came days after his cabinet colleague Satej (Bunty) D.Patil promised that justice will prevail in the 2018 case against Goswami for alleged role in the abetment to suicide case.