 "UBT Sena MP Sanjay Raut jailed for 15 days in defamation case; gets bail")
Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena party MP Sanjay Raut on Thursday was sentenced to 15 days simple imprisonment in a defamation case linked to Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Kirit Somaiya's wife Medha Somaiya.
A Mumbai court had handed him the sentence but later suspended it for 30 days and granted him bail on his application for the same. Raut was convicted under Indian Penal Code Section 500 (punishment for defamation). In addition to jail term, the Rajya Sabha MP faced a penalty of Rs 25,000.
The case is linked to Somiaya’s wife Medha, who alleged that Raut had made baseless remarks against her and her husband. She said that Raut accused them of involvement in a Rs 100 crore scam related to the construction and maintenance of public toilets.
"The statements made by the accused to the media are per se defamatory. The statements have been made to malign my character in the eyes of the general public," the complaint had stated.
Raut had alleged that the couple was involved in the alleged scam over toilet construction, which was made under Mira Bhayander Municipal Corporation's jurisdiction. He had made the remarks in an article published by the party's official Marathi newspaper Saamna. Raut is the executive editor of the party newspaper.
Calling Raut’s article defamatory, Medha said that it falsely accused her of constructing unauthorised toilets by destroying mangroves and without obtaining necessary approvals from environmental authorities.
On Raut’s conviction, Medha expressed her satisfaction with the court order. The couple alleged that Raut had made 27 allegations against them and their family.
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Kirit Somaiya is a former BJP Lok Sabha MP.