The Delhi High Court has issued summons against Congress MP Shashi Tharoor in a defamation case filed by Bharatiya Janata Party leader Rajeev Chandrasekhar. The court will next hear the matter in April.
Hearing the case, Delhi High Court Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav directed the registrar to list the case for April 28. "Let the plaint be registered as a suit. Issue summons to the defendant (Tharoor). List before the joint registrar on April 28," the bench ordered. The bench directed Tharoor to file his response before the next hearing.
In his plea, the former union minister charged during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, the Congress MP levelled baseless allegations against him and it did influence the final results. Chandrasekhar had sought the court’s intervention and orders to restrain Tharoor from making any defamatory statements.
During the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, Chandrasekhar contested in the Bharatiya Janata party’s ticket against Tharoor from the Thiruvananthapuram constituency. Chandrashekar charged the Congress MP levelled baseless allegations against him, like distributing cash to voters, and it damaged his reputation.
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In his plea, Chandrasekhar said, "These actions of (Tharoor) resulted in significant damage to the (Chandrashekhar's) reputation and ultimately led to his defeat (in the general elections) by a narrow margin of 16,077 votes," Bar and Bench reported.
The BJP leader argued the narrow margin by which Tharoor won the 2024 Lok Sabha polls shows the significant impact of his statements on the final results. The BJP leader sought a public apology and Rs 10 crore in damages from Tharoor.
The Congress leader allegedly made the controversial statement during an interview with a television channel amidst polls and Tharoor alleged Chandrasekhar offered money to voters during the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.
