“I Have Taken It Down On My Own”: Sudhir Chaudhary Tells Delhi HC In Defamation Suit By CJP Protest Activist

Senior Advocate Dayan Krishnan, appearing for Chaudhary and his production company Essprit Productions, made the submission before Justice Tushar Rao Gedela.

“I have taken it down on my own. We have taken a conscious decision to take it down,” Krishnan said, adding that the defendants had also written to social media intermediaries requesting removal of any posts by third parties that remained on their platforms.

Krishnan further stated that he had no objection if the Court issued directions to social media platforms concerning removal of the content.

₹5 crore defamation suit by Vijay Sherawat

Sherawat, a 20-year-old activist and UPSC aspirant, has filed a ₹5 crore defamation suit against Chaudhary, Essprit Productions and DD News over a broadcast of Chaudhary's programme “DECODE”.

According to Sherawat’s suit, the programme identified him and displayed his image while attributing to him statements to the effect that Parliament would be “destroyed” and India would be turned into “Nepal”.

Sherawat has denied making the statements, claiming that they were made by another unidentified person at a different event.

The suit alleges that the defendants failed to verify the identity of the person who made the statements before the broadcast and did not provide Sherawat an opportunity to respond. It further alleges that a low-quality version of the footage was used, making it difficult to distinguish between the two individuals.

The plaint also states that the broadcast was subsequently circulated on social media and that Sherawat received threats following its dissemination.

The Delhi High Court had earlier issued summons to Chaudhary, Essprit Productions and DD News in the suit and sought their response to Sherawat’s plea for interim relief.

Chaudhary sought closure; Sherawat wanted to continue

Krishnan submitted that since the posts had been taken down, nothing remained in the matter and the proceedings could be closed. Sherawat, however, opposed the submission and stated that he wanted to continue with the case.

Justice Tushar Rao Gedela accordingly directed that the matter be heard next in January 2027.

The Court has not, at this stage, adjudicated the merits of Sherawat’s defamation allegations. The suit remains pending.