Karnataka High Court quashes FIR against Arnab Goswami in ‘fake news’ case
Bengaluru: The Karnataka High Court on Thursday quashed an FIR against Republic TV editor-in-chief Arnab Goswami over allegations of airing fake news about Chief Minister Siddaramaiah. The Bengaluru police had booked Goswami and R Kannada editor Niranjan J in March 2024 under s. 505(2) of the IPC for allegedly promoting enmity through false statements.
The case was based on a complaint by Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee member Ravindra MV, who alleged that Republic Kannada aired a report on March 27, 2024, claiming Siddaramaiah’s convoy had blocked traffic and obstructed an ambulance on MG Road in Bengaluru. The complainant stated that the chief minister was in Mysuru at the time, making the report false.
During the hearing, Justice M Nagaprasanna questioned the validity of the FIR, stating there was "absolutely nothing, abuse on its face." Goswami’s counsel, senior advocate Aruna Shyam, informed the court that the video in question was deleted within 24 hours of its broadcast.
The High Court had earlier placed an interim stay on investigations in December 2024, observing, “What has Arnab Goswami done? There is a plethora of things brought out by him. It might have proved good for some and bad for others, but where is the case of inciting?”
With the latest order, the FIR stands quashed, bringing the case to a close.
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8 dead, dozens wounded in Russian strike on Ukraine's Odesa port
Kyiv (AP): Eight people were killed and 27 wounded in a Russian missile strike on port infrastructure in Odesa, southern Ukraine, late on Friday, Ukraine's Emergency Service said on Saturday morning.
Some of the wounded were on a bus at the epicentre of the overnight strike, the service said in a Telegram post. Trucks caught fire in the parking lot, and cars were also damaged.
The port was struck with ballistic missiles, said Oleh Kiper, the head of the Odesa region.
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Elsewhere, Ukrainian forces hit a Russian warship and other facilities with drones, Ukraine's General Staff said in a statement on Saturday.
The nighttime attack on Friday hit the Russian warship “Okhotnik,” according to the statement posted to the Telegram messaging app.
The ship was patrolling in the Caspian Sea near an oil and gas production platform. The extent of the damage is still being clarified, the statement added.
A drilling platform at the Filanovsky oil and gas field in the Caspian Sea was also hit. The facility is operated by Russian oil giant Lukoil. Ukrainian drones also struck a radar system in the Krasnosilske area of Crimea, which Russia illegally annexed from Ukraine in 2014.
