Delhi High Court seeks BJP leader Chhail Bihari Goswami’s reply on Satyendar Jain’s plea in defamation case

The High Court bench listed the plea on December 14, while noting that it will have to hear the parties and see the trial court record.

Goswami had filed a defamation case against five AAP leaders, including Atishi, Saurabh Bharadwaj, and Durgesh Pathak. Goswami had alleged the AAP leaders had made statements regarding the alleged misappropriation of around Rs 2,500 crore, belonging to the North MCD, which was under the BJP’s control then.

Jain had approached the Delhi High Court against a November 9 order of Special Judge M K Nagpal upholding a November 9, 2022, order of Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate-01 Rouse Avenue, which had dismissed Jain’s discharge application and had directed service of ‘notice of accusation’ for the commission of the offence of defamation upon Jain.

The special court had noted the magistrate court’s order showed that extensive arguments were addressed on various aspects, including whether Goswami was an aggrieved person as he was not specifically named in the defamatory statements or imputations and whether the allegations were in fact defamatory or not among others.

Upholding the magistrate court’s order, Special Judge Nagpal had said the trial court or the sessions court does not have the inherent power to discharge an accused after he has been summoned by the magistrate court in a summons triable case.

Special Judge Nagpal had also noted that the appropriate remedy available to an accused in such a situation is to approach the High Court for the exercise of inherent powers vested in it for seeking the desired relief.

Judge Nagpal had, however, said the magistrate court may revisit its summoning order in such a case when it has no jurisdiction to try the case. Judge Nagpal had also said that admittedly the issue of jurisdiction was never raised before the magistrate court nor was it found in the case.