The "leaked transcripts" of a purported WhatsApp chat between Republic TV CEO Arnab Goswami and BARC ex-CEO Partho Dasgupta has caused a political furore in the country, with the opposition parties railing against the Centre and the popular news anchor. Transcripts of the alleged messages (its authenticity still to be confirmed) were 'leaked' last week, with the opposition claiming that Arnab was flaunting his proximity to the Narendra Modi government.
In the transcripts, Arnab purportedly referred to the Pulwama attack on February 14, 2019. Three days before the Balakot air strike on February 26, 2019, Goswami purportedly wrote India's response would be: "Bigger than a normal air strike. And on the same time something major on Kashmir. On Pakistan the government is confident of striking in a way that people will be elated." THE WEEK cannot vouch for the veracity of the transcripts or the leaked chats.
Dasgupta, who was arrested in the fake Television Rating Point (TRP) case, is now in the ICU of state-run JJ hospital in central Mumbai. A diabetic, he was rushed to the hospital from the Taloja Central Prison in Navi Mumbai on Saturday after his blood sugar levels went up on Friday midnight. The Mumbai police had earlier told the court that Goswami had allegedly bribed Dasgupta with lakhs of rupees to ramp up Republic TV's viewership.
Opposition calls for probe
The Maharashtra government is gathering information on the chats, Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh said, adding the issue will be discussed by the Cabinet on Tuesday.
Speaking to reporters, Deshmukh asked how Goswami came to know about such sensitive information is a big question. "We are gathering information about the leaked chats between Arnab Goswami and Partho Dasgupta. Some highly sensitive things including the Balakot airstrike and the Pulwama attack have been mentioned in the chats. How Arnab came to know about such sensitive information is a big question," Deshmukh said. He said the state cabinet is scheduled to meet on Tuesday in Mumbai. "After the meeting, a decision about this issue will be taken," Deshmukh said.
Earlier, the Sharad Pawar-led Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) asked the government to set up a Joint Parliamentary Committee to probe the purported chats. NCP chief spokesperson Mahesh Tapase said, "It is extremely shocking and disturbing to know how issues related to national security have been used to gain TRPs."
"Goswami has been at the forefront in maligning the image of the Mumbai police and also the Maha Vikas Aghadi government in the state," Tapase claimed. "In his TV debates, he tried to give a communal angle to the Palghar incident. The Sushant Singh Rajput death case was blown out of proportion and a false narrative was set. All this was done with the sole intention to destabilise the MVA government," Tapase said. The BJP should clarify its position on Arnab Goswami, he said.
National security and issues of monumental importance have been reduced to a TRP tamasha, PDP president Mehbooba Mufti alleged on Monday. "Today we stand vindicated that it was done to benefit a particular party in the elections, and not to avenge the martyrs of Pulwama attack," she claimed, referring to Balakot airstrikes.
Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel on Monday sought a Supreme Court-monitored probe into the purported chats. "This is dangerous for the country's security. How come such highly confidential information was known to a journalist? If it has happened then the judiciary and the NIA should take suo motu cognisance of the matter," he said. Baghel asked the Centre to clarify its stand. "The Centre should clarify that how he [Goswami] had information about it and why it is being covered up. The matter should be probed under the supervision of a sitting judge of the Supreme Court as it is linked to the nation's security. There should be no politics on the issue and an impartial inquiry should be conducted into the matter," he said.
-Inputs from agencies
