On a complaint filed by Congress MP Shashi Tharoor who alleged that confidential documents relating to the probe into the death of Sunanda Pushkar, Delhi court has ordered filing of First Information Report against news channel Republic TV and its Managing Director, Editor-in-Chief and Co-founder Arnab Goswami, reported Bar & Bench on Saturday.
In his January 21 decision that was uploaded on Friday, Metropolitan Magistrate Dharmender Singh, directed the SHO concerned to file an FIR.
According to Bar and Bench, court order read, “This court is of the considered view that in view of allegations leveled by complainant and material produced on record in the form of RTI replies and other material, matter disclosed commission of cognizable offence.”
Appearing for Tharoor, Senior advocate Vikas Pahwa had told the court that during the investigation of the death case, police collected a number of items of the deceased and recorded statement of complainant and Narain Singh. All those documents and materials were part of confidential record and within the sole possession of the investigation team.
“It is alleged that during several broadcast on said news channel, which was conducted by proposed accused persons, certain documents were shown on news channel which were stated to be documents related to investigation of the death of complainant’s wife,”, he said.
It alleged that these confidential documents were “illegally accessed” and “shown/broadcast on their news channel”.
Earlier, a Srinagar court has directed Arnab Goswami to appear to the court on February 9 with regards to a criminal defamation suit filed by PDP leader Naeem Akhtar, according to reports.
Akhtar had accused Goswami along with former PDP MLA Molvi Abid Ansari, Republic TV correspondents Zishan Fazil, Aditya Raj Koul and BJP activist Khalid Jehangir of levelling fabricated corruption charges against him.
Arnab Goswami to replace Pratap Bhanu at Nehru Memorial Museum
