Don’t subscribe to Arnab, Kangana’s view but against suppressing voices: Devendra Fadnavis

Former chief minister of Maharashtra and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Devendra Fadnavis on Saturday said that he does not subscribe to the opinions of journalist Arnab Goswami and actor Kangana Ranawat, but was not in favour of suppressing the voices that criticised the government.

“We do not subscribe to the thoughts of Arnab Goswami and Kangana Ranaut but we are against the attitude of suppressing those who speak against the government,” Fadnavis said.

The BJP leader was referring to the events following Kangana Ranaut’s statement that she feared the Mumbai police more than the “movie mafia” and her comparison of Mumbai to Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). The actor’s row with the Maharashtra government escalated further when the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) demolished her office in Bandra’s Pali Hill for “structural violations”.

In the latest development in the row, the Bombay High Court on Friday ruled that the BMC officials involved in the demolition acted out of malice and also appointed a valuer to assess the quantum of damage, according to news agency PTI.

Meanwhile, Republic TV editor Arnab Goswami was granted bail by the Supreme Court on November 11 after being arrested by Alibaug police on November 4 for allegedly abetting the suicide of 53-year-old interior designer Anvay Naik and his mother Kumud in 2018. The apex court on Friday said the bail granted to the journalist would be operative for another four weeks.

“We are dealing with a person’s liberty. Across the country, if this court is not to interfere today, we are treading on a path of destruction of liberty....you may dislike a person’s ideology and challenge it but if this is what our states will do to nail persons, we have to put across this message to all high courts to preserve the liberty of citizens,” the bench had said on November 11.