The Reliance Group, led by Anil Ambani, on Tuesday announced its decision to withdraw the Rs 5,000 crore civil defamation suit, filed in a court here, against Congress leaders and the National Herald newspaper over their statements and an article on the controversial Rafale fighter jet deal.
The court of city civil and sessions judge P J Tamakuwala is hearing the suits.
The complainant's lawyer, Rasesh Parikh, told reporters that: "We have intimated the defendants that we are going to withdraw the suits against them."
Concurring, P.S. Champaneri, the counsel for the National Herald and some other defendants, said the Reliance Group's counsel informed him that he had received instructions from the group to withdraw the defamation cases.
The formal process to withdraw the suits would begin once the court resumes after the summer vacation, he added.
Reliance Defence, Reliance Infrastructure and Reliance Aerostructure, which are companies of the Anil Ambani-owned Reliance Group, had filed civil defamation cases against Congress leaders Sunil Jakhar, Randeep Singh Surjewala, Oommen Chandy, Ashok Chavan, Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Sanjay Nirupam and Shaktisinh Gohil, and some journalists and news organisations like the National Herald.
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The defamation suits were also filed against the National Herald's editor Zafar Agha, and Vishwa Deepak, the author of a news article published by it.
--IANS
desai/vd