Newslaundry Spreads Fake Rumours About Public Figures Including PM Modi: Abhijit Iyer before Delhi HC
The Delhi High Court, on Monday, disposed of the defamation suit filed by Manisha Pande against Abhijit Iyer Mitra for calling them 'prostitutes' and their news channel a 'brothel'.
During the current hearing, the advocate appearing for Mitra prayed the court to investigate the Newslaundry News Channel, claiming that it reports false news or rumors. He alleged that the channel made insinuations and cast aspersions on public figures, including a rumor regarding relations between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Prime Minister of Italy, Giorgia Meloni.
However, the bench of Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav refused to take any action regarding the same, noting that such allegations are not part of this petition. The bench remarked, "If you want an investigation against this channel, the remedy lies elsewhere. Today, we are only concerned with the posts on social media".
During the current hearing, the advocate appearing for Mitra informed the court that the order was complied with and all defamatory posts were taken down. However, after Advocate Dixit informed the court of one social media post that was still accessible on the morning of the hearing. The court directed Mitra to re-examine all posts, noting that one might have inadvertently been overlooked.
The bench then questioned the parties regarding remaining prayers in the suit. Advocate Dixit responded by stating that there should be no further publication of such content.
The court acknowledged that Mitra had given an undertaking not to post defamatory content. It was observed that the defendant had posted content, realised his fault, and gave an undertaking to remove the posts. It was noted that the court had not issued any formal order for the removal.
Advocate Dixit argued that Mitra should be held to that undertaking, stating that criticism must remain within legitimate bounds. She also remarked that Mitra had shown no remorse in a recent post on platform X, stating, "He shows no remorse in his post on X regarding the court’s directions to take down his poetic posts".
The court refused Mitra's prayer to dismiss the application with costs. The court also noted that it was not imposing a general restraint on Mitra's right to post on social media. However, the court further emphasized that in this particular case, a boundary was crossed, in which his statements were defamatory rather than being covered under freedom of speech and expression.
The bench stated, "We are not restraining you from posting anything. Here in this case, you crossed a Lakshman Rekha. So long as your posts are within the right to speech, it is okay. When it becomes defamatory, then it becomes problematic". The bench reiterated that while the right to free speech is protected under the constitution but it does not extend to defamatory statements.
After hearing both sides, the court granted liberty to the plaintiffs to initiate appropriate legal proceedings in the future should any new defamatory content be published by Mitra. However, at this stage, the bench declined to proceed further with the present matter.
For Petitioner: Advocate Bani Dixit
For Respondent: Advocate Jai Anant Dehadrai
Case Title: Manisha Pande v Abhijit Iyer Mitra (CS(OS) - 332/2025)