Arvind Sawant, a parliamentarian from Shiv Sena, has written to Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh, seeking action against journalist Arnab Goswami for dragging Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray in his coverage of the Sushant Singh Rajput case.
The politician told the NCP leader that Goswami leveled allegations without evidence and referred to Thackeray in a derogatory manner.
Goswami was accused of spreading fake news.
Context: Backstory: How is Goswami linked with SSR's case?
Goswami, the boss of Republic TV, has been running primetime shows demanding CBI probe into the tragic death of SSR for weeks now.
The actor, 34, died in June, and the case was probed by Mumbai Police. His admirers and family, however, were unhappy with how the case was handled.
The journalist supported the movement, slamming Mumbai Police, Bollywood, and the state government.
Letter: Republic is airing news irresponsibly, said MP in letter
In his letter to Deshmukh, Sawant claimed Goswami didn't abide by Press Council of India's norms.
"Under the garb of journalism, Mr. Arnab Goswami, chief editor of Hindi news channel Republic Bharat and English news channel Republic TV, is constantly airing news irresponsibly. Without any evidence, the news channels and its Chief Editor Arnab Goswami have been leveling allegations on Maharashtra Cabinet minister," he said.
Details: Sawant slammed media trial, said anchors are disrespectful
Speaking to media yesterday, Sawant said there is a culture of "media trial."
"Recently, it is seen channels decide the accused, name some people, and indulge in character assassination. The body language and the manner in which this is done is so disrespectful," he said.
He said in the past as well Goswami spoke about politicians in a derogatory manner, inviting cases against himself.
Fact: Sawant decried the language used by anchors
"It came to a point where Maharashtra Chief Minister was singularly named. Such language is aggravating. This is not just disrespecting the person but is the insult of the entire state. I have asked the Home Minister to take cognizance of this," he added.
Looking back: Earlier, another Sena leader had asked Goswami to apologize
Just last week, another Sena leader, Vasantrao Naik Sheti Swavlamban Mission (VNSSM) President Kishore Tiwari said Goswami should apologize with "folded hands" for the way he spoke about Thackeray or face criminal proceedings.
"Once during the program, you had gone one step more to term Thackeray as 'prime accused' of the [Sushant] case in your prejudged, perverse, biased, and pre-determined style," he had said.
Details: As Sushant's case went to SC, Goswami was pleased
This episode comes months after Goswami had another run-in with the Maha Vikas Aghadi government for his provocative statements. He was summoned by Mumbai Police, and he claimed he was being targeted for speaking against the state government.
In fact, today, after Supreme Court handed over Sushant's case to CBI, a visibly ecstatic Goswami said a "lesson has been taught" to the Maharashtra government.
