Accused ignored Anvay Naik's suicide threat: Charge sheet against Arnab
The charge sheet filed againstRepublic TV editor-in-chief Arnab Goswami and two others in a2018 abetment of suicide case claims that they did not heedinterior designer Anvay Naiks threat to end his life if hisdues were not paid.
In a related development, Goswami again moved theBombay High Court on Saturday, seeking a direction to thelower court not to take cognisance of the charge sheet.
The charge sheet, filed by the police at Alibaugsessions court in neighbouring Raigad district on Friday, alsoclaimed that Naik, under stress due to non-payment of dues,killed his mother Kumud before hanging himself.
Besides Goswami, the other two accused who are namedin the charge sheet are Firoze Sheikh and Nitish Sarda.
“The victim (Naik) had told them (accused) that hewould commit suicide if they dont pay his dues. However, theaccused ignored his threat and told him to do whatever hewants,” the charge sheet said.
“The accused didnt pay his dues, which causedmental stress to Naik. He first strangulated his mother,thinking that she might land in trouble as she was also apartner in his business,” it said.
Naik then wrote a suicide note and hanged himself, thecharge sheet added. Police said that they have relied on thepurported suicide note as the “dying declaration”.
Naiks handwriting has been matched with the writingin the suicide note, police said.
The firms of Goswami, Sheikh and Sarda allegedly owedNaiks company Concorde Designs Pvt Ltd Rs 83 lakh, Rs fourcrore and Rs 55 lakh, respectively.
The sessions court is expected to take cognisance ofthe charge sheet on December 16, said Rahul Agarwal, advocatefor one of the accused.
The police have invoked IPC sections 306 (abetment tosuicide) and 109 (punishment for abetment) in the charge sheetthat runs into 1,914 pages.
On Saturday, Goswami moved the Bombay High Courtseeking a direction to the Alibaug court not to takecognizance of the charge sheet.
He alleged that the police filed it knowing fully wellthat he had filed an application in the high court seeking astay to the filing of charge sheet only on Thursday.
In May this year, Maharashtra Home Minister AnilDeshmukh had announced that he had ordered a fresh probe inthe case — closed by the police earlier — following acomplaint by Adnya Naik, Anvay Naiks daughter.
Goswami, Sheikh and Sarda were arrested by Alibaugpolice on November 4, but they got bail from the Supreme Courton November 11.
In his plea filed in the HC on Thursday, Goswami alsosought transfer of the probe to the CBI or other independentagency. He accused the Maharashtra government of pursuingvendetta against him because of his work as a TV journalist.
BJP leader Devendra Fadnavis, meanwhile, questionedthe Shiv-Sena-NCP-Congress governments decision to file acharge sheet despite the Supreme Courts observations whilegranting bail to Goswami and others.
“Isnt this a mockery of Supreme Courts judgment? Arethey again trying to suppress personal liberty?” he asked.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Federal staff and is auto-published from a syndicated feed.)
