NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court on Tuesday directed former finance secretary Subhash Garg to block or mute an allegedly defamatory remark against BJP MP Nishikant Dubey in a podcast. TMC MP Mahua Moitra's counsel also told the court that she would remove related posts on X.
Justice Tushar Rao Gedela issued summons to Garg and Moitra on Dubey's suit seeking permanent and mandatory injunctions to restrain them from making defamatory remarks against him. Dubey has also sought an apology and Rs 2 crore in damages.
The court directed Garg and Moitra to file their replies and asked whether they could refrain from further disseminating the content in the meantime. Their counsel argued that the lawsuit did not present the correct picture.
The judge observed that both Dubey and Garg were persons of repute and said the former finance secretary should not have used an “intemperate word” in the podcast.
“Except for the ‘blackmailing’ word, there is nothing else...Cut that sound out. Block that blackmailing word, that's all,” the judge said, adding that the term was derogatory and could not be used to describe anyone, though the other remarks were debatable.
Garg's counsel assured the court that he would contact the podcast host to mute the allegedly defamatory phrases.
Moitra's counsel told the court that she would remove her post on X describing Dubey as a “fake degree kism ke aadmi” (a person of the fake-degree kind).
Dubey has alleged that Garg made false and malicious imputations against him in a podcast interview on September 17. The interview was subsequently published and circulated on YouTube, Facebook and other digital platforms.
