Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena on Thursday was acquitted by a court in national capital's Saket in a two-decade-old defamation case that was filed against him by social activist Medha Patkar. The detailed order, which is yet to be released by the court, was passed by Saket court's Judicial Magistrate First Class (JMFC) Raghav Sharma.
"The allegations are not proved beyond a reasonable doubt... You are acquitted," the Saket court told Saxena, who was appearing via video conferencing.
Patkar, who was the face of the Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA), had sued Saxena over an advertisement published in a national daily in 2000 by the National Council for Civil Liberties (NCCL). At that time, Saxena was its president. In her complaint, Patkar stated that the advertisement, titled 'True face of Ms Medha Patkar and her Narmada Bachao Andolan', was 'false' and 'defamatory'.
However, the court in March last year had dismissed Patkar's application to examine additional witnesses in the case, calling it "deliberate attempt to delay the trial, rather than a genuine necessity".
Patkar acquitted in defamation case by Saxena
Amid the ongoing legal tussle between the two, the Saket court had acquitted Patkar in a defamation case filed by Saxena earlier this month. The court had pointed out that Saxena had failed to provide legally admissible evidence against Patkar.
The defamation case was filed by Saxena in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, who accused that the social activist had defamed him while appearing in a TV programme. In 2010, it was transferred to Delhi following the Supreme Court's order. But in its order on January 24, the Saket court noted that there is no material available to show Patkar was a panellist on the programme.
"It is important to note that neither the reporter who actually recorded the audio-video nor any person who had seen the accused making the impugned statements has been examined as a witness," the court said. "It is also crucial to note that the clip played in the programme/show appears to be only a very short clipping from an interview or press conference of the accused."
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