The arrest of Editor-in-Chief and Founder of Republic TV Arnab Goswami has been headlining across the nation since the high-level drama unfolded by the Mumbai police on Wednesday. While the reason for his arrest was immediately not known initially, the reports confirmed that he got detained with the connection to a case of suicide, that happened in 2018. 

According to reports, Arnab Goswami was arrested by the Raigad district police with the help of Mumbai Police on Wednesday morning from his residence in Mumbai. In what had become a national development, Arnab was arrested in connection to the suicide of Anvay Naik, who committed suicide in 2018. Along with Naik, his mother had also committed suicide. 

Anvay Naik (53) was the interior designer and he was one of the architects who worked with Republic TV in building in their studios in Mumbai when the channel was newly established by Arnab Goswami in the financial capital. In 2018, Naik had committed suicide and left a shocking reason in his suicide note. In his note, he wrote that he and his mother decided to take the extreme step as their dues of Rs 5.4 crores were not cleared by three companies including Arnab's ARG Outlier. 

Anvay Naik was the managing director of the interior designing company Concorde Designs and it was alleged that Arnab Goswami had failed to pay the designer Rs 83 lakhs. Following the suicide in May 2018, Anvay's wife Akshata had approached the police station and filed a complaint against Goswami and two others who were named in the suicide note.

However, it was said that Concorde Designs Private Limited had reported financial losses of Rs 4.45 crore in 2016-17 and it was levied with a debt of Rs 19.6 crore to several debtors and the company had received an overdraft of Rs 10 crore on their bank accounts. According to the Registrar of Companies, the company was based in Mumbai, and Anvay and his mother Kumud Naik were co-directors. Republic TV had denied Naik's allegations and said that some groups were running a false and malicious campaign against the channel. 

The English news channel had also claimed that it had cleared all due amounts. One year later, the case hadn't seen any development, and Raigad police had closed the case filed by Anvay's wife. The reports say that the case was closed on April 16th, 2019. However, Anvay's daughter Adnya had approached Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh in May 2020 and she petitioned the Home Minister to re-open the case. 

In her plea, she said that Alibag police had failed to conduct a fair and proper probe and demanded the re-investigation. Based on her plea, the Home Minister had directed to reopen the probe and handed over the probe to the Criminal Investigation Department. As the probe was re-opened, the Raigad police had now arrested Arnab Goswami with the help of Mumbai police on Wednesday in connection to the suicide case. 

The reports say that over 20 policemen had stormed inside the residence of Arnab Goswami in Mumbai and arrested the journalist. Arnab was first put in the car and he then pushed into a van and while detaining, he told the cameras that he was assaulted and he said that the Mumbai police had physically assaulted his mother-in-law and father-in-law, son, and wife. The reports say that Arnab Goswami was taken to the crime branch office and the Republic TV slammed the move of treating the top Indian news channel like a criminal, pulled, threatened, and not allowed to drink water.

Quoting the statement of the Assistant Commissioner of Police, Republic TV said that Arnab was arrested under section 306 - abetment of suicide of the Indian Penal Code. Following the arrest, Republic TV had released a statement in which it had said that Arnab Goswami was blocked by the Mumbai Police from acquiring the help of his legal team. The FIR has been against Arnab and two others in Alibaug police station in Raigad district near Mumbai, where the incident of suicide took place. 

Arnab Goswami's lawyer said, "His arrest was not informed to his wife. He was assaulted by 2 police officers. His family members were pushed & the house was cordoned off for 3 hours. There are abrasions on his left hand & an existing injury on his hand was tried to be torn apart by police".

His arrest was not informed to his wife. He was assaulted by 2 police officers. His family members were pushed & house was cordoned off for 3 hours. There are abrasions on his left hand & an existing injury on his hand was tried to be torn apart by police: Arnab Goswami's lawyer pic.twitter.com/GIzBntEBoL

— ANI (@ANI) November 4, 2020