India News | HC Stays Defamation Proceedings Against BJP Leaders in Defamation Complaint by DJB
Get latest articles and stories on India at LatestLY. The Delhi High Court on Wednesday sought response from AAP leader Raghav Chadha and Delhi Jal Board (DJB) on BJP leader Ramvir Singh Biduri's challenge to the summons issued to him on their defamation complaint and stayed the trial court proceedings in the case.
New Delhi, Nov 8 (PTI) The Delhi High Court on Wednesday sought response from AAP leader Raghav Chadha and Delhi Jal Board (DJB) on BJP leader Ramvir Singh Biduri's challenge to the summons issued to him on their defamation complaint and stayed the trial court proceedings in the case.
The case was heard by Justice Manoj Kumar Ohri who listed it for further hearing in March.
The Leader of Opposition in the Delhi Assembly contended in his petition that the defamation complaint and proceedings against him are an abuse of process of law.
The complaint, filed jointly by DJB vice chairperson and Chadha, claimed that Biduri and other BJP leaders indulged in a malicious campaign to tarnish their reputation.
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The complaint had alleged that on January 21, a press conference was held by the accused persons who levelled allegations of corruption against DJB and Chadha.
According to the complaint, the accused had deliberately made defamatory statements in spite of knowing that such allegations were false and would tarnish the image of complainants.
In his petition before the high court, Biduri claimed that he has been at the forefront of exposing irregularities in the working of the city government, which is the job of any opposition party in a democracy, and therefore, cannot be accused of defamation for highlighting the “total mismanagement of accounts” of DJB.
“All the comments in the press conferences/ press release etc were to show total mismanagement of functionality of Board by the members of the Board resulting in statutory default by the Board," the petition stated.
“The Petitioner being a responsible Leader of Opposition is entitled to his democratic right to protest. The protests by way of press conferences and press release etc were to bring the factual & actual facts regarding total mismanagement of accounts of complainant no. 1 (DJB) -an instrumentality of state, leading to default on the part of Government of NCT of Delhi by not getting the annual accounts audited as mandated,” it added.
The petition submitted that the statements in question are not defamatory in nature since no personal allegations have been made against the complainants.
On November 18, a trial court had summoned Biduri and several other accused BJP leaders -- Adesh Gupta, Vijendra Gupta and Harish Khurana -- on the defamation complaint.
Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Dharmender Singh had said that there were sufficient grounds for proceedings against the leader and directed them to appear before the court.
If convicted, the accused may get a maximum two-year jail term.
(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)