The Delhi High Court on Tuesday directed the issuance of summons to Republic TV Editor-in-Chief Arnab Goswami and the channel in a civil defamation suit filed by the Indian National Congress over a May 2025 broadcast that falsely claimed the party operated an international office in Turkey.

The Congress has claimed ₹2 crore in damages, alleging that the broadcast damaged its reputation.

Justice Mini Pushkarna ordered that the plaint be registered as a suit and summons be issued to the defendants through all available modes.

The defendants have been given 30 days to file their written statement.

The court also issued notice of the plaintiff’s application for an interim injunction, with replies due within four weeks.

No interim relief was granted at this stage. The matter has been listed for further hearing on May 19, 2026.

The controversy originated during a prime-time broadcast on Republic TV in May 2025, amid “Operation Sindoor”, India’s military response to a terror attack, when Turkey was perceived to have aligned with Pakistan.

In the programme, Goswami asserted that the Congress maintained a registered office in Istanbul and aired visuals of a building purportedly belonging to the party.

He questioned the loyalty of Congress voters and suggested the party was working against national interests.

Independent fact-checks subsequently established that the building featured in the broadcast was the Istanbul Congress Centre, a public convention facility managed by the Istanbul municipality and unrelated to the Indian National Congress.

Republic TV later issued a public apology, acknowledging that a video editor on its digital desk had inadvertently used an incorrect image due to a technical error.

The channel clarified that the erroneous clip was never aired during the live telecast, but was uploaded only to its digital platforms after the show and removed immediately upon detection.

Separately, an FIR was registered against Goswami and BJP IT cell head Amit Malviya following a complaint by the head of the Indian Youth Congress legal cell, which described the claim as part of a “criminally motivated” disinformation campaign.

On May 22, 2025, the Karnataka High Court passed an interim order staying further investigation in the FIR.

The Delhi High Court proceedings remain at the preliminary stage, with no determination yet on the merits of the defamation claim.

The case will now proceed as a regular civil suit.

This development underscores ongoing debates in Indian media regarding editorial responsibility, the rapid spread of unverified information on digital platforms, and the legal recourse available to political parties in such matters.