KOCHI: The Kerala High Court on Monday said since the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) is a definite and identifiable body, its members have the locus standi (right) to file a defamation complaint.
Hence, the complaint filed by the RSS secretary – against an article published in the weekly in 2011 – was maintainable, the court said while dismissing the petition filed by the editor of Mathrubhumi Illustrated Weekly, Kozhikode, seeking to quash the entire proceedings in a defamation case initiated against the weekly on the secretary’s complaint.
The RSS secretary had alleged that an article published in the weekly on February 27, 2011, contained claims that were defamatory and misleading, tarnishing RSS’ reputation in the public. It could also promote enmity between different groups on the grounds of religion, the secretary had said in the complaint.
The petitioners submitted that the secretary had no locus standi to represent the organisation of RSS.
“It cannot be said RSS is a definite and determinable body. Only if there is a definite association or collection of persons capable of being identified that it can be said that the defamatory matter applies to all the members of the organisation,” said the petitioners.