Arnab Goswami to appear before Mumbai Police for his involvement in TV ratings fraud

Arnab Goswami, the Editor-in-Chief and Managing Director of Republic Media Network, and his wife Samyabrata Ray Goswami are soon expected to be questioned by Mumbai Police in connection with the alleged TV ratings fraud. Mumbai police on Thursday said that promoters and directors of Republic TV will be probed in the scam involving manipulation of Television Rating Points (TRP).  They will be summoned either today or tomorrow, Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh said.Arnab is the sole promoter and Chairman of the board of the Republic Media Network (RMN). Republic TV's parent ARG Outlier Media Private Limited has two directors - Samyabrata Ray Goswami and Arnab Ranjan Goswami. The city cops claim to have busted the TRP manipulation racket involving Republic TV and two Marathi channels - Fakt Marathi and Box Cinema. 

Republic Media Network's Editor-in-Chief Arnab Goswami's statement pic.twitter.com/axhbJZ47eA

— Republic (@republic) October 8, 2020

The owners of Marathi channels have already been arrested, police said. The three channels are alleged to have rigged the apparatus used by Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC), Singh said. According to the police, these channels allegedly bribed households to run some channels continuously even when not at home.  "If you see the data, poor uneducated households, who don't speak English were watching only English TV channels," Singh added. Every household was allegedly paid Rs 400-500 per month, he claimed. Responding to the allegations, Arnab said the channel would file a criminal defamation case against the police chief. "Mumbai Police Commissioner Param Bir Singh has made false allegations against Republic TV because we have questioned him in the Sushant Singh Rajput case investigation.  The allegations have set off a chain of political reactions including a tweet by Union information and broadcasting minister Prakash Javadekar. “Free press is a defining feature of our democracy and a cherished ideal of the Constitution. Trampling on media freedom will not be tolerated by people of India. Targeting of the media by #Congress and its allies is against all principles of democracy and is unacceptable,” the Union minister had tweeted.