The Delhi High Court on Monday refused to dismiss a criminal defamation case filed against Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal for retweeting a defamatory video titled ‘BJP IT Cell Part 2’ uploaded by YouTuber Dhruv Rathee.
#BREAKING
— Live Law (@LiveLawIndia) February 5, 2024
"Retweeting Defamatory Content Attracts Action Under Section 499 Of IPC:" Delhi High Court refuses to quash summons against Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal in defamation case for retweeting an allegedly defamatory video posted by YouTuber Dhruv Rathee in 2018.… pic.twitter.com/yGCmbxZmn8
Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma affirmed the trial court’s decision to summon Arvind Kejriwal in the case.
The single-bench judge mentioned that Kejriwal possesses a substantial following on X (formerly Twitter) and was aware of the consequences of retweeting the video.
“Retweeting defamatory content does amount to defamation,” the Court noted.
The case was initiated by Vikas Sankrityan, also known as Vikas Pandey, a supporter of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the founder of the social media page ‘I Support Narendra Modi.’
Pandey took to X to thank his lawyers for their support in the case. “HC rules against @ArvindKejriwal in the defamation case by me. He had shared a video against me made by Dhruv Rathee. I thank my lawyers @raghav355 & @ThisIsTheMukesh who took this case up probono and have been fighting against a few of highest paid lawyers in India in the case,” he tweeted.
HC rules against @ArvindKejriwal in the defamation case by me. He had shared a video against me made by Dhruv Rathee.
— Vikas Pandey (Sankrityayan) (@MODIfiedVikas) February 5, 2024
I thank my lawyers @raghav355 & @ThisIsTheMukesh who took this case up probono and have been fighting against few highest paid lawyers in India in the case. pic.twitter.com/OFLWrceskz
The case pertains to a defamatory video posted by YouTuber Dhruv Rathee, who asserted that Pandey serves as the second-in-command of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) IT cell and alleged that Pandey had offered ₹50 lakhs through an intermediary to Mahavir Prasad to retract his accusations that the ruling party’s IT cell spreads misinformation and fake news.
Prasad made these allegations in an interview with Rathee, which was uploaded on Rathee’s YouTube channel on March 10, 2018, titled ‘BJP IT Cell Insider Interview.’ Subsequently, on May 7, 2018, Rathee released another video titled ‘BJP IT Cell Part 2,’ accusing Prasad of being offered money.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal retweeted this video on May 7, 2018. Pandey argued that Kejriwal’s retweet contained false and defamatory allegations against him. He contended that, given Kejriwal’s substantial following and without verifying the authenticity of the claims, the Delhi Chief Minister disseminated the video to a wide national and international audience.
On July 17, 2019, Kejriwal was issued a summons by the Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate. Despite Kejriwal’s appeal to the Sessions Court to quash the summons being rejected, he approached the High Court challenging both the Magistrate’s and Sessions Court’s orders. He also sought the dismissal of the criminal defamation case filed by Pandey.
Arvind Kejriwal to continue his apology spree? Had earlier apologised to Bhadana, Majithia, Nitin Gadkari, Kapil Sibal, and Lt. Arun Jaitley
With the Delhi HC quashing Kejriwal’s plea, the Delhi CM has little option than to furnish an apology to Pandey, something which has done in the past to end his legal mess. In August 2017, Kejriwal apologised to Avtar Singh Bhadana for calling him corrupt in 2018. In March 2018, Kejriwal apologised to former Punjab Cabinet Minister Bikram Singh Majithia, whom he had accused of being a part of the drug trade in Punjab. Kejriwal had also tendered apologies to Nitin Gadkari and Congress leader Kapil Sibal for making defamatory statements against them. Arvind Kejriwal had also apologised to former Union Minister Lt. Arun Jaitley for allegations against him during his tenure as the DDCA president.
