The Delhi High Court on Tuesday issued summons to Republic TV Editor-in-Chief Arnab Goswami in a defamation suit filed by the Congress party, which alleged that he falsely claimed on his channel that the Istanbul Congress Centre in Turkiye was the office of the Indian National Congress. Justice Mini Pushkarna issued the summons while registering the plaint as a formal suit but declined to grant an interim injunction against the broadcast at this stage, noting that the content in question was aired in May 2025.
The court has asked Goswami to file a response to the plea for interim relief within four weeks and listed the matter for the next hearing on May 19.
What Congress Alleged
The party’s counsel argued that the false claim was made in the volatile backdrop of the Pahalgam terrorist attack, at a time when India-Turkey relations were already strained due to Turkey’s perceived support for Pakistan. The counsel submitted that the content had caused and continued to cause serious damage to the party’s reputation. “Offending content continues to do damage. People are still talking about it. They have admitted it is false,” the counsel told the court while pressing for an immediate stay on the broadcast.
Justice Pushkarna, however, noted the time that had elapsed since the broadcast and said she would give a short date before deciding on interim relief. “May 15, 2025, was the broadcast. I will give you a short date,” she observed.
Earlier Complaint in Bengaluru
The Delhi defamation suit is not the only legal action arising from the controversy. In May 2025, the Indian Youth Congress’s legal cell head, Shrikant Swaroop B N, filed a complaint with the Bengaluru police against both Goswami and BJP IT cell head Amit Malviya, accusing them of spreading false information. The complaint was registered as an FIR and alleged that both individuals had maliciously propagated the fabricated claim that the Istanbul Congress Centre in Turkiye was the office of the Indian National Congress, at a time when such a claim could inflame public sentiment against the party.
The investigation in that Bengaluru case was subsequently stayed by the Karnataka High Court.
