The Delhi High Court on Wednesday stayed proceedings before a trial court, which had issued summons to BJP leaders, including Aam Aadmi Party leader Raghav Chadha and Ramvir Singh Bidhuri, on a defamation complaint filed by the Delhi Jal Board (DJB).
Justice Manoj Kumar Ohri, who listed Mr Bidhuri’s petition for further hearing in March, also issued notices to Mr Chadha and the DJB.
Mr Bidhuri, who is the Leader of the Opposition in the Delhi Assembly, has argued in his petition that the defamation complaint and proceedings against him are an abuse of the process of law.
The complaint, jointly filed by the DJB vice-president and Mr Chadha, claimed that Mr Bidhuri and other BJP leaders launched a malicious campaign to tarnish his reputation. It was alleged that on January 21, DJB and the accused, who had accused Mr Chadha of corruption, held a press conference.
Shri Bidhuri claimed in his petition that “all the comments in the press conference/press release etc. were meant to show total mismanagement of the efficiency of the Board by the members of the Board resulting in statutory lapse by the Board”.
“The petitioner being a responsible Leader of the Opposition is entitled to his democratic right to protest. The protests through press conferences and press releases etc. were to bring out factual and anecdotal facts about the total mismanagement of the accounts of the complainant no. 1 (DJB) – an instrument of the State which leads to default on the part of Delhi Government by not getting the accounts audited compulsorily,” it added.
Shri Bidhuri submitted that the statements under consideration are not defamatory in nature as no personal allegation has been made against the complainants.
On November 18, a trial court had summoned Mr. Bidhuri and several other accused BJP leaders – Adesh Gupta, Vijender Gupta and Harish Khurana – on a defamation complaint.
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