‘Don’t hit below the belt’: HC to Republic TV on Anil Ambani coverage

A single-judge bench of justice Milind Jadhav orally told Goswami and Republic TV to “bring down the rhetoric” and refrain from “giving superlative taglines to news” that could be seen as attacking an individual

MUMBAI: The Bombay High Court on Wednesday asked news channel Republic TV and its editor-in-chief, Arnab Goswami, to avoid “hitting below the belt” while covering the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED’s) investigations into companies linked to industrialist Anil Ambani.

The court was hearing a defamation suit filed by Anil Ambani against Republic TV and Arnab Goswami for linking him to ongoing ED investigations into alleged loan fraud involving three companies he founded but no longer controls. (Hindustan Times)

A single-judge bench of justice Milind Jadhav orally told Goswami and Republic TV to “bring down the rhetoric” and refrain from “giving superlative taglines to news” that could be seen as attacking an individual.

“Please run stories without using adjectives or disparaging someone. You have been in this field for years. You are aware about all the scams, etc.,” the bench said.

The court was hearing a defamation suit filed by Ambani against Republic TV and Goswami for linking him to ongoing ED investigations into alleged loan fraud involving three companies he founded but no longer controls—Reliance Communications (RCom), Reliance Home Finance Ltd, and Reliance Commercial Finance Ltd.

In his petition, Ambani stated that the continuous coverage on Republic TV regarding the ED’s proceedings involving the three companies had caused “irreparable damage” to his reputation.

He added that Goswami knew this, but continued to link him to the cases and called him a “financial scam mastermind, cheat, money launderer, and a fraud”.

“These imputations have created a false perception of guilt and have exposed the applicant to public hatred, ridicule, and contempt,” the petition said, adding that this has caused “irreparable injury” to Ambani’s reputation and professional dignity. The plea sought a temporary injunction against ARG Outlier, the company that owns Republic TV, Goswami and other related entities.

During the hearing on Wednesday, senior advocate Mahesh Jethmalani, appearing for Goswami, contended that his client had made a “true and fair comment” on his show. He claimed that several adjudicating authorities had used the same language in their orders, adding that Ambani is “not a financial wizard, but a financial scamster”.

However, advocate Mayur Khandeparkar, representing Ambani, claimed that the news channel had run a “smear campaign” against his client in the last week of February. He referred to instances in which Ambani’s picture was displayed on the channel along with words such as “financial scamster and fraudster”.

The high court expressed concern over statements made against Ambani, saying they could be interpreted in many ways. “You are doing your duty of giving news, which is okay, but hitting below the belt is not okay,” it said. Clarifying that the comments made on Goswami’s show were “not fair”, the court added that the channel should avoid using certain words and “exercise some restraint”.

“I am not gagging any media channel. Ultimately, it is the right of the public to know. This is one of the fairest mediums in today’s time. All that I am saying is just run your story and not resort to using such comments. You carry on with your stories. Your stories are, in fact, what the nation wants to know. But just do not hit below the belt,” justice Jadhav said.

While Jethmalani assured the court that Republic TV would not use such words in the future, the court directed the channel to file a formal reply to Ambani’s petition, and adjourned the matter till April 16. “Let there be a fair level playing field for everybody. Don’t go below the belt. Wait for my orders and avoid using disparaging words,” the court concluded.