SC sets aside HC verdict quashing summons to The Wire editors in defamation case filed by ex-JNU prof
In a major setback to the Editor Siddharth Bhatia and Deputy Editor Ajoy Ashirwad of The Wire in a criminal defamation case filed against them by former JNU Professor Amita Singh, the Supreme Court has set aside the Delhi High Court order quashing the summons issued against them. Now they have to appear in a lower court as per the summons issued by it in the case.
The top court's two-judge bench led by Justice M M Sundresh and including Justice Arvind Kumar, while setting aside the judgment of the High Court, was of the opinion that no observation should have been made by the Delhi High Court holding that no defamation was made as it was for the trial court to decide it.
The apex court, in its order on Wednesday, remanded the case back to the magistrate court (trial court) for deciding the case afresh in accordance with the law.
Ravi Prakash Gupta, lawyer for Singh, told The New Indian Express that his client filed the defamation suit against The Wire's Bhatia and Ashirwad for publishing a news item alleging that a team of professors led by Prof. Singh had submitted a dossier to the JNU administration alleging falsely that sex rackets are being carried out in the JNU girls hostel.
Initially, the magistrate court in Delhi had issued a summons to them, but then the accused duo moved the Delhi HC, which stayed the summoning order in 2017. After this, Prof Singh moved the apex court seeking that the Delhi HC order be set aside.
Gupta submitted that there was sufficient material against the accused duo for summoning them and the Delhi HC had erred in it.
Gupta stated that The Wire had published the news item in April 2016, entitled “Dossier Calls JNU ‘Den of Organised Sex Racket” which was also subsequently carried by other newspapers. He said it was defamatory in nature and therefore the apex court should set aside the order of the Delhi High Court which held that no case of defamation was made out against the accused.
Gupta further said that the news item, without verifying who compiled and submitted the dossier to JNU, attributed the name of Prof. Amita Singh inviting violent protests against her.
This article spread like wild fire followed by violent protests against Singh in different universities including the burning of her effigy with students marching to her office everyday shouting slogans.
Gupta denied that his client Singh had anything to do with either the preparation of the dossier or its submission to the JNU administration.
"It is now clear from the affidavit of the Vice Chancellor, filed before the Supreme Court, whereby the Jawaharlal Nehru (JNU) administration denied any such dossier is in their record," Gupta submitted to the apex court.
Linking this dossier to Prof Singh sparked anger against her and she was condemned in all academic bodies, committees & boards isolating her in both Indian and foreign universities, affecting her career in her post-retirement period, Gupta alleged.
The counsel for The Wire, senior advocate Nitya Ramaswamy, defended the High Court judgment holding that the judicial magistrate was wrong in issuing the summons.
The Delhi HC had held that no case of defamation was made out in the article and hence there was no sufficient ground for the trial court to issue a summons to the Editor & Deputy Editor.