NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court on Tuesday upheld the conviction of social activist Medha Patkar in a defamation case filed by Delhi Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena over two decades ago.
Justice Shalinder Kaur ruled that there was no error in the trial court and appellate court decisions that found Patkar guilty. The court also agreed with the earlier decision to release Patkar on probation rather than jail her.
However, the High Court gave her some relief by modifying the probation condition that required her to appear before the trial court every three months. Now, she can either appear virtually or be represented by a lawyer.
The case dates back to the year 2000, when Saxena, then President of an organisation called National Council of Civil Liberties, had published an advertisement criticising Patkar’s Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA), a movement against dam construction on river Narmada.
In response, Patkar issued a press note alleging that Saxena had earlier supported the NBA and had even donated Rs 40,000 through a cheque from the Lalbhai Group, which later bounced. The press note also questioned Saxena’s patriotism and claimed he was acting as an agent for the Gujarat government.
Saxena filed a defamation case against Patkar in Ahmedabad in 2001. The Supreme Court later transferred the case to Delhi in 2003. In 2024, Patkar was found guilty by a magistrate court, sentenced to five months in jail, and asked to pay Rs 10 lakh in compensation. The court said her statements were made with clear intention to harm Saxena’s reputation.
On April 2, 2024, a Sessions Court upheld her conviction but reduced the punishment. Patkar was released on probation for one year and asked to pay Rs 1 lakh in compensation instead of Rs 10 lakh. She challenged the conviction in the High Court, which has now upheld it.
What led to the Saxena- Patkar spat
After Vinai Saxena published an ad criticizing Patkar’s NBA, she issued a press note alleging that Saxena had earlier supported the NBA and had even donated Rs 40,000 through a cheque from the Lalbhai Group, which later bounced. The press note also questioned Saxena’s patriotism, which led to the defamation case filed by Saxena.