Fake TRP Case: Issue summons to Arnab Goswami before arraignment, says HC

The Bombay High Court on Monday said if the Mumbai police crime branch proposes to arraign Republic TV Editor-in-Chief Arnab Goswami in the television rating points (TRP) case, it should first issue summons to him as was done for eight others in the case.A division Bench of justices S.S. Shinde and M.S. Karnik said if such a summons is issued then Arnab Goswami shall appear before the police and cooperate with the investigation. The court also directed police to submit for its perusal investigation papers pertaining to the case in a sealed cover by November 5 when it would hear the matter. “The FIR is not an encyclopedia. We would like to peruse the investigation papers and see what probe has been done from today till the next date of hearing,” the court said.

Republic TV is one of the three channels accused by Mumbai Police commissioner Param Bir Singh of manipulating the ratings. The police has filed a First Information Report (FIR), but the court said they first need to issue summons to Goswami. The case is being heard by a bench comprising Justice SS Shinde and MS Karnik. During the course of the hearing, Goswami’s counsel Harish Salve said that his client will appear before the police if summoned. Salve also assured the court of full cooperation from Goswami’s side.The channel moved the high court seeking quashing of the FIR registered in the case and its transfer from Mumbai police to Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). 

The channel filed the petition on October 16, a day after the Supreme Court refused to hear a plea of one of its senior officials challenging the summons issued by the Mumbai police, and asked him to approach the Bombay high court instead. The high court has agreed to start the final hearing in the case from November 5. It has directed the police to produce all the developments in investigation before it in a sealed cover by November 4. Six people have been arrested by the Mumbai police in the scam, which allegedly involves inducing homes which form the sample set whose TV viewing is monitored to ensure that certain channels get higher ratings. The ratings are a key influencer of advertiser preferences while placing commercials. The police claim this is a “multi-crore” scam.