Mon Feb 24 15:31:58 UTC 2025: ## Karnataka High Court Quashes FIR Against Arnab Goswami
**Bengaluru, February 24, 2025** – The Karnataka High Court has quashed a First Information Report (FIR) filed against Arnab Goswami, editor-in-chief of Republic Media Network, for allegedly promoting enmity between classes. The FIR, registered in March 2024, stemmed from a complaint alleging that Republic Kannada television channel aired a false report about a traffic jam impacting an ambulance on M.G. Road in Bengaluru, potentially hindering Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s convoy.
Justice M. Nagaprasanna deemed the case a “classic illustration for dragging him only to settle other scores,” stating that even if the report were true, it didn’t meet the criteria of Section 505(2) of the Indian Penal Code, which pertains to promoting enmity or hatred. The court criticized the complaint’s recklessness, noting Goswami, as editor-in-chief, neither made the statement nor directly aired the content. The judge further observed that Goswami’s prominence in media was exploited to initiate the case without justification. Allowing further investigation, the court argued, would constitute an abuse of legal process and lead to a miscarriage of justice. The FIR has been officially quashed.
First Piper 