All the shouting and trading of insults on primetime news might be catnip for some people – but Rajdeep Sardesai has clearly had enough.

Last night on India Today, BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla was on the panel to discuss Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s arrest and remand to ED custody. 

It started innocuously enough. Poonawalla wittered on about how Kejriwal was wrong to call these actions “vindictive”. He asked why Sardesai’s show wasn’t focusing on what the Congress had to say.

“It’s coming,” Sardesai said. “Hold your horses.”

Annoyed, Poonawalla asked Sardesai not to interrupt him. “Before having a level playing field elsewhere, start having a level playing field on your show. Allow the BJP to complete...But you also want to play the role of not an anchor but sometimes defend in support of Congress party. That’s your choice.”

Sardesai was having none of it. “Mr Poonawalla, my new rule is that if you’re making personal jibes, you’re stopped.”

Poonawalla shouted that Sardesai didn’t have the “courage to listen to the truth” and Sardesai promptly muted his mic.

And this went on – and on, and on. If you took a shot every time Sardesai shut Poonawalla down, you’d be fairly tipsy.

At one point in the show, Poonawalla thundered, “This is your bias! Now do not interrupt me! Listen to me carefully!”

Sardesai immediately turned down the volume on his mic. “Once again you shout at me…You want to talk like a decent Indian, you can. You want to shout, I will shut you down.” Careful listeners could hear Poonawalla’s voice faintly shouting in the background before he was muted entirely.

Sardesai later said: “Mr Poonawalla, I will tell you this. When you were in school, probably having a Chiclet, I was doing this profession. So do not again ever tell me and shout at me. Because if you shout at me, you’re welcome to leave the show. There will be no shouting anymore…I’ve listened to you for years now and you do not have the decency to talk to people with minimum decency.”

Poonawalla opened his mouth to respond but Sardesai was too quick for him. “Put him down!”

Just another day on primetime television. Meanwhile, if you want all the details on why Kejriwal was arrested and how drama played out last night in court, read this piece in Newslaundry.

In times of misinformation, you need news you can trust. We’ve got you covered. Subscribe to Newslaundry and power our work.