Republic TV managing director and Editor-in-chief Arnab Goswami was arrested by Mumbai Police from his residence earlier today regarding an abetment of suicide case from 2018. The police personnel allegedly physically assaulted Goswami and misbehaved with his family members.

Speaking to news agency ANI, the journalist displayed the injury marks on his body and stated, “This is the injury on my arm. You can clearly see it. I have shown it to the doctors. It was Pradip Patil, Sachin Vaze and seven other policemen. They surrounded me. They held me by the scruff of my neck. They pushed me. I have come here as you can see, without my shoes.” He added, “I want the people of the country to know that I have been assaulted.”

The case regarding which Goswami was detained was closed earlier. However, it has been reopened now and he was arrested under the section 306 of Indian Penal Code (IPC). This incident has evoked sharp responses from top political figures like Amit Shah, JP Nadda, EAM Dr S Jaishankar amongst others from the BJP.

“Congress and its allies have shamed democracy once again. Blatant misuse of state power against Republic TV & Arnab Goswami is an attack on individual freedom and the 4th pillar of democracy. It reminds us of the Emergency. This attack on free press must be and WILL BE OPPOSED,” Union Home Minister Amit Shah sternly declared on Twitter.

Republic TV and Mumbai police have been at loggerheads since the last few months over multiple issues. Goswami was questioned for long hours during the thick of the nationwide lockdown over his verbal attacks on Sonia Gandhi on the mob-lynching of sadhus in Palghar.

Furthermore, Republic TV vehemently covered the investigations of actor Sushant Singh Rajput’s death and the channel has questioned Mumbai’s police commissioner Param Bir Singh over naming the channel in the alleged fake TRP controversy.