Arnab Goswami
Arnab Goswami.Twitter/Viswa Virinchi

Arnab Goswami, the face of 'prime-time' news, resigned as the editor-in-chief of Times Now on Tuesday. The 43-year-old reportedly announced the decision during an editorial conference. The meeting was called at 4.30 pm and went on till about 5.30 pm.

Sources say Goswami wants to start a new channel with Rajeev Chandrasekhar and American media baron Rupert Murdoch. Times Now, however, is still showing teasers of The Newshours with Arnab Goswami saying "ARNAB IS BACK."

Goswami was not seen on the show for the past couple of days. It is likely that November 1 will be the last time Goswami's 9pm debate will be aired on Times Now. According to reports, Goswami made the announcement in a room full of Times Now employees in Mumbai with bureau staff joining via video conferencing. The channel staff responded with stunned silence.

Goswami's prime-time show is primarily responsible for Times Now's consistent high ratings and his absence is likely to hurt the Times Group channel in a highly-competitive market.

Sources within the Times Group indicate that Goswami was holding meetings with an organisation to set up a new television and digital news venture for the past six months. It was also indicated that at least a handful of Times Now employees will move to the new project along with him. In Goswami's words, the new project will be a "formidable competition to BBC and CNN."

"He repeatedly said that 'The game has just begun'," a source in Times Now told TNM, "and that 'independent media is going to thrive'." Another source, who was at the meeting, told TNM that Arnab said, "I'm a rolling stone that does not gather moss."

Meanwhile, Twitter is exploding with hilarious reactions: