Gujarat Samachar owner Bahubali Shah arrested by ED, gets interim bail

A court in Ahmedabad on Friday granted bail to one of the owners of leading Gujarati daily ‘Gujarat Samachar’ Bahubali Shah till May 31 on health grounds, a day after his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate.

Principal district and sessions judge K M Sojitra ordered Shah’s release on interim bail while adjourning the hearing on his application for regular bail to May 31.

The sessions court directed Shah, 73, to furnish a surety and personal bond of Rs 10,000. It also imposed the condition that the investigating agency must be informed about his health status every other day, and he must cooperate with the investigation subject to his medical condition.

The ED, which arrested Shah at 8 pm on Thursday, did not oppose interim bail, stating it was giving its consent “strictly on humanitarian grounds and extreme medical condition of the accused.”  Shah is one of the directors of Lok Prakashan Limited which owns ‘Gujarat Samachar’. His elder brother Shreyansh Shah is the managing editor of the daily.

Soon after his arrest, Shah was taken to a government hospital after his health deteriorated, and from there to a private hospital where he was admitted in the ICU, the court was informed.

He approached the court seeking interim bail on the grounds of “serious medical/health condition.”  “The medical certificate of Zydus Hospital dated Friday reveals that he is admitted in ICU...along with other medical conditions he is diagnosed Vertigo, Left paramedian infarct and having a complaint of drowsiness and blurry vision,” the court noted in the order.

The “interest of justice would be served if the accused is ordered to be released on interim bail during the pendency of hearing of his regular bail application with conditions,” the judge added.

Shah’s lawyer said he approached the court with a regular bail application, but at present he was confining the arguments for interim bail “on humanitarian ground” due to his client’s serious medical condition.

The ED will be provided updates of Shah’s medical condition and he will cooperate fully with the investigation, the lawyer assured.

The central agency has not yet issued any statement about the reasons behind Shah’s arrest.

The ED conducted searches at the offices of GSTV, a Gujarati news channel run by Shreyansh Shah, in Ahmedabad on Thursday evening. The ED team arrived soon after the Income Tax department searched the premises for 36 hours, said Tushar Dave, head of digital services at GSTV, in a Facebook post.

MLA and Gujarat Congress working president Jignesh Mevani alleged that the newspaper and its owners were being targeted, because for the last 25 years, Gujarat Samachar has been publishing reports critical of the Union government.

Media bodies in the national capital also expressed concern over Bahubali Shah’s arrest by the ED.

The Press Club of India, Indian Women’s Press Corps, Press Association, Delhi Union of Journalists, Kerala Union of Working Journalists, Working News Cameramen’s Association said the ED action “reflects a troubling assault on press freedom and democratic values that uphold the right to free expression in India.”  The arrest raises questions about the misuse of state machinery to muzzle media houses and suppress dissenting voices, they said in a joint statement.

Media bodies express concern over arrest of Gujarat Samachar owner

New Delhi: Media bodies on Friday expressed concern over the arrest of Gujarat Samachar owner Bahubali Shah by the Enforcement Directorate.

The Press Club of India, Indian Women’s Press Corps, Press Association, Delhi Union of Journalists, Kerala Union of Working Journalists, and Working News Cameramen’s Association said the ED action “reflects a troubling assault on press freedom and democratic values that uphold the right to free expression in India.”

They said the arrest of Shah raises questions about the misuse of state machinery to muzzle media houses and suppress dissenting voices.

“We also call for the immediate release of the owner unless credible evidence is presented in a transparent manner,” the media bodies said in a joint statement.