The Supreme Court on Wednesday granted interim bail to Republic TV editor in-chief Arnab Goswami and two others who were arrested last week in an abetment to suicide case first filed in 2018.
A bench of Justice D.Y. Chandrachud and Indira Banerjee ordered that Arnab and the other accused—Nitish Sarda and Parveen Rajesh Singh—be released on interim bail on a personal bond of Rs 50,000 each. It also directed the Commissioner of Police to ensure the order is followed immediately.
Arnab's legal team approached the Supreme Court after the Bombay High Court on Monday refused to grant interim bail to him and the two others in the case.
Arnab's counsel had made the Maharashtra government, Alibaug police station SHO, Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh and Akshyata Anvay Naik as parties to his appeal. Akshata was the wife of Anvay Naik, an interior designer who committed suicide with his mother in 2018. In a suicide note, Anvay Naik alleged Arnab had not paid him Rs 83 lakh pending for the work he did in Republic TV's studios.
Appearing for Arnab in the Supreme Court on Wednesday, advocate Harish Salve pointed to "abuse of power" by the state government in arresting Arnab in a case that had been closed.
"We are well past the FIR stage. The FIR was lodged in 2018, May 5; after this matter was investigated. The power to re-investigation has been wrongly used," Salve was quoted by Live Law as saying.
Salve argued "there was no abetment" case that could made out against Arnab Goswami. Live Law reported, "Salve read averments which say that Anvay Naik murdered his mother. His mother wrote a nasty letter to Arnab in angst and financial distress."
Salve told the Supreme Court about all the cases filed against Arnab Goswami and Republic TV reporters and claimed no offence had been made out in any of them.
Salve was quoted by Live Law as asking was Arnab a "terrorist? Is there a murder change on him?". Salve added the Bombay High Court had made a "gross mistake".
Advocate Mukul Rohatgi appeared for Neetish Sarda, one of the two other accused persons. Rohatgi was quoted by Live Law as saying, "The three accused have no connections between them. There is no question of my client inciting, abetting or egging on Anvay Naik to suicide.”
Rohatgi claimed Sarda had been "caught" in the crossfire between the Maharashtra government and Arnab Goswami.
Chandrachud refers to personal liberty
Justice Chandrachud asked advocate Kapil Sibal, who appeared for the Maharashtra government, whether a case of abetment to suicide could be made out against Arnab. "To make out a case of abetment, there has to active incitement and encouragement. If money is owed to a person, is that a case of abetment to suicide?" Chandrachud was quoted as saying by Live Law.
Live Law quoted Chandrachud as saying "We are dealing with personal liberty here and because he was owed money, Naik committed suicide due to financial stress. Is this a case of custodial questioning?"
"Assuming the FIR is the gospel truth and that’s a matter of investigation but is not paying up money abetment to suicide? It will be a travesty of justice if bail is not granted while FIR is pending Mr. Sibal," Chandrachud was quoted as saying by Live Law.
Chandrachud also took issue with the Bombay High Court order for purportedly not dealing with the "ingredients" of the offence of abetment. Justice Chandrachud noted “we are travelling the path of destruction undeniably,” if constitutional courts do not interfere.
Justice Chandrachud was quoted by Live Law as saying, "We must send a message today to the High Courts as well: 'Please exercise your jurisdiction to uphold personal liberty!'"
Interestingly, Justice Chandrachud said of Arnab, "I don’t even watch his channel, never turn it on".
Background
The Bombay High Court had asked Arnab and the other accused persons to move the local court in Alibaug for relief.
Arnab was arrested on November 4 from his Lower Parel residence in Mumbai and taken to Alibaug. He and the two other accused were later produced before a magistrate who refused to send them in police custody and remanded them in judicial custody till November 18.
Arnab was initially kept at a local school, which is designated as a COVID-19 quarantine centre for the Alibaug prison. He was on Sunday shifted to the Taloja jail in Raigad district after allegedly being found using a mobile phone while in judicial custody.
