NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Wednesday stayed the criminal defamation proceedings against Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders Manoj Tiwari and Vijender Gupta. The proceedings against the BJP leaders were initiated based on a complaint by Delhi’s Deputy Chief Minister, Manish Sisodia.
On December 17, 2020, the Delhi High Court had dismissed the petitions by MP Tiwari and MLA Gupta challenging trial court order issuing summons to them in the defamation case filed by Sisodia. High Court Justice Anu Malhotra dismissed the petitions that challenged trial court order issuing summons to them. The petitioners had also sought quashing of an order passed by Rouse Avenue Court on November 28, 2019.
Sisodia had filed a defamation case against Tiwari, BJP MPs Hans Raj Hans and Pravesh Verma, BJP MLAs Manjinder Singh Sirsa and Vijender Gupta and BJP spokesperson Harish Khurana for making allegations regarding his (Sisodia’s) involvement in Rs 2,000-crore corruption in the construction of classrooms for Delhi government schools.
Sisodia, in the defamation case, stated that all the allegations made by the BJP leaders jointly and severally were false, defamatory and derogatory, and intended to damage his reputation. If convicted, the offence entails a punishment of up to two years, or with fine or both.
Bench of CJI grants relief to petitioners
A bench headed by Chief Justice S A Bobde agreed to hear the pleas filed by Tiwari and Gupta who have challenged the Delhi High Court’s December 17 last year verdict which had upheld the November 28, 2019 summoning order passed by the trial court