Criminal Defamation

You cannot be "touchy" in politics, the Supreme Court observed while hearing Union Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting L Murugan's plea relating to a criminal defamation proceeding initiated against him. Murugan approached the apex court last year, challenging a September 5, 2023, Madras High Court order in which it had refused to quash the proceeding against him on a complaint filed by Chennai-based Murasoli Trust for his alleged defamatory statements during a December 2020 press conference. While agreeing to hear his petition on September 27 last year, the top court stayed the proceeding against Murugan that was pending in a special court in Chennai. The apex court had also sought the Trust's response on his plea challenging the high court order. When the matter came up for hearing before a bench of Justice BR Gavai and Justice KV Viswanathan on Friday, the counsel appearing for Murugan said, "Where is the question of defamation in this case?" The lawyer appearing

Delhi HC issued a contempt notice to Wikipedia for not disclosing users behind defamatory edits on news agency ANI's page. The court also warned of shutting down Wikipedia's operations in India

A defamation suit against Fox News by a government official who served on a short-lived US government media disinformation board was dismissed on Monday by a federal judge. The lawsuit from Nina Jankowicz alleged that Fox had defamed her on numerous occasions, leading to waves of online attacks and threats of violence after the formation of the Disinformation Governance Board, where she served as a director. In May of 2022, just weeks after its launch, the Department of Homeland Security paused the board's work and accepted Jankowicz's resignation. The board was officially dissolved and its charter rescinded in August of that same year. In rejecting Jankowicz's claims, the judge said that 36 of the 37 statements made on Fox News programmes were about the disinformation board and not Jankowicz. The judge ruled that the remaining statement which was also a reference to the board and not Jankowicz, despite showing an image of her as it was said was not disinformation because it was a

The Bombay High Court has said Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has a legitimate right for an expeditious decision on merits over a 2014 defamation complaint for his alleged remarks against the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. A single bench of Justice Prithviraj Chavan in the order of July 12 said Article 21 of the Constitution provides the right to a speedy trial for everyone and a free and fair trial is something that is absolutely necessary. The court made the remarks while allowing Gandhi's petition to quash a magistrate's order permitting an RSS worker to submit fresh and additional documents in the pending criminal defamation complaint. A detailed copy of the order was made available on Tuesday. In 2014, Sangh worker Rajesh Kunte lodged a defamation complaint before the Bhiwandi magistrate's court, claiming the Congress leader had made false and defamatory statements during a speech that the RSS was responsible for the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi. In 2023, the magistrate court

The Allahabad High Court has dismissed international shooter Vartika Singh's plea challenging an MP/MLA court order rejecting her defamation complaint against Union minister Smriti Irani. The Lucknow bench of the high court said that while replying to journalists' questions, if the petitioner was said to be associated with the Congress party or the "Gandhi family", it was not her defamation. The bench of Faiz Alam Khan passed the verdict on March 5 which was uploaded on Monday. Vartika Singh had filed a case in the Sultanpur MP/MLA court, accusing Irani of defamation. The case was dismissed by the special court on October 21, 2022. The petitioner had challenged the MP/MLA court's order in the high court. Singh's allegation was that when journalists asked Irani about the allegations made by the petitioner against her personal secretary, Irani described the petitioner as a "pawn" of the Congress and said she was having direct links with the Gandhi family. Quoting Irani's entire ...

The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear on Monday a plea by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal challenging a Delhi High Court order which upheld summons issued to him as an accused in a criminal defamation case for retweeting an allegedly defamatory video circulated by YouTuber Dhruv Rathee in May 2018. A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta is likely to hear the matter. In its judgement dated February 5, 2024, the high court had said that reposting alleged libelous content will attract defamation law. The high court had said a sense of responsibility has to be attached while retweeting content about which one does not have knowledge and added that retweeting of defamatory content must invite penal, civil as well as tort action if the person retweeting it does not attach a disclaimer. "This court is of the view that rigours of Section 499 (defamation) of IPC will be attracted prima facie in case a person retweets/ reposts the alleged defamatory remarks or content, for the

The Supreme Court held it was appropriate to end the proceedings since Tejashwi Yadav unconditionally withdrew his remarks

Expressing concern that TMC leader Shahjahan Sheikh, the prime accused in the case of assault on ED officials, may have "crossed the border", West Bengal Governor C V Ananda Bose has instructed authorities to arrest him immediately and investigate his alleged connections with terrorists. His remarks that Sheikh has links with terrorists drew sharp criticism from the ruling TMC on Sunday. The statement issued by Raj Bhavan late Saturday night highlighted that the governor, upon receiving a complaint in the Peace Room, instructed the police chief to promptly arrest the culprit. "On receipt of a complaint in the Peace Room of Raj Bhavan that Shahjahan Sheikh is supported by some political leaders with the connivance of some police officers, Hon'ble Governor instructed the Police chief to arrest the culprit forthwith and report compliance," the statement said. The governor emphasised on the need to ascertain Sheikh's whereabouts and take appropriate action. The complaint alleging that

Union Minister Gajendra Shekhawat had filed a criminal defamation case against Rajasthan Chief Minister for claiming he had a role in the Rs 900 crore Sanjivani Cooperative Society scam

Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat had filed a criminal defamation lawsuit against the chief minister for allegedly claiming Shakawat was involved in the Sanjeevani scam

During the hearing on Friday, Abhishek Singhvi, who was representing Gandhi, said that Purnesh Modi's original surname is not Modi but belongs to the Modh Varnika Samaj

Modi surname case in SC: In the last hearing, on July 21, the apex court sought responses from former Gujarat minister Purnesh Modi and the state government on Gandhi's plea

Going to jail is a rite of passage for politicians, and they tend to emerge stronger if the punishment is seen to be unfair

Rahul Gandhi is fighting the battle for truth and people's interests against an "arrogant regime" which is adopting all tricks in the book to suppress the questions he is raising, Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said on Friday after the Gujarat High Court dismissed her brother's plea seeking a stay on his conviction in a criminal defamation case. While dismissing the plea, Justice Hemant Prachchhak noted that Gandhi was already facing 10 criminal cases across India, adding that the order of the lower court was "just, proper and legal" in handing over a two year jail term to Gandhi for his "Modi surname" remark. In a long Twitter post in Hindi, Priyanka Gandhi quoted the poem "samar shesh hai...(battle is yet to be over)" by Ramdhari Singh 'Dinkar' and launched a scathing attack on the Modi government. Rahul Gandhi is fighting the battle for truth and people's interests against this "arrogant regime", she said. "The arrogant regime wants that questions related with people's ..

While dismissing the plea, Justice Hemant Prachchhak noted that Gandhi is already facing 10 cases across India, adding order of the lower court was "just, proper and legal" in convicting Cong leader

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has moved the Gujarat High Court challenging the Surat Sessions court verdict that rejected his plea seeking a stay on his conviction in the 2019 criminal defamation case

The BJP Thursday hailed the Surat court's decision to reject Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's plea for a stay on his conviction in a criminal defamation case as a "victory" of the judiciary and the people. Hitting out at the Congress, BJP national spokesperson Sambit Patra said, "The court's decision is a slap on the arrogance of the Gandhi family, especially Rahul Gandhi." It also proves that law is equal for everyone, he said at a press conference here. A court in Gujarat's Surat city on Thursday rejected Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's application for a stay on his conviction in a criminal defamation case over his "Modi surname" remark. The court of additional sessions judge R P Mogera rejected Gandhi's application for a stay on conviction which, if allowed, could have paved the way for his reinstatement as the Member of Parliament. The 52-year-old Congress leader was elected to the Lok Sabha from Wayanad in Kerala in 2019 but was disqualified a day after the lower court last mont

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Congress leader Rahul Gandhi will on Monday file an appeal before a court in Surat in Gujarat against his conviction in a criminal defamation case. Gandhi is likely to remain present in the sessions court when the plea will be filed challenging the lower court's order sentencing him to two years in jail, sources said on Sunday. "A petition challenging the lower court order will be filed in the sessions court of Surat on Monday, with Rahul Gandhi remaining present," a member of his legal team said requesting anonymity. Senior state and national leaders of the Congress will accompany him to Surat, sources said. The court of Chief Judicial Magistrate HH Varma here had on March 23 convicted Gandhi and sentenced him to two years in jail in a 2019 criminal defamation case filed against him over his Modi surname remarks. It had held 52-year-old Gandhi guilty under Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 499 and 500. The court had also granted him bail and suspended the sentence for 30 days to