The Delhi High Court has issued a significant interim order, directing the Indian National Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) to immediately take down all social media posts and content that allegedly link Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Dushyant Gautam to the tragic Ankita Bhandari case. The order was passed by Justice Subramonium Prasad on Monday, marking a pivotal development in the defamation suit filed by Gautam.
Court's Directives and Legal Proceedings
Justice Subramonium Prasad, while presiding over the matter, granted interim relief to the BJP leader. The court explicitly ordered the political parties to remove the contentious posts from platforms like X (formerly Twitter), Facebook, Instagram, and any other websites under their control. This directive is effective immediately and stands until the next hearing scheduled for September 18, 2024.
The legal action was initiated by Dushyant Gautam, who filed a defamation suit seeking damages worth Rs 1 crore from both the Congress and the AAP. In his petition, Gautam contended that the parties had launched a concerted and malicious social media campaign against him. He argued that the posts falsely implicated him in the Ankita Bhandari murder case, thereby causing severe harm to his reputation and subjecting him to public ridicule and harassment.
Content of the Controversial Posts
The social media posts in question, which have now been ordered for removal, reportedly contained serious allegations. They attempted to draw a connection between Gautam and the main accused in the Ankita Bhandari case. Ankita Bhandari, a young woman, was found murdered in Uttarakhand in 2022, a case that had sparked nationwide outrage.
Gautam's legal team asserted that the posts were not only false but were also published with malicious intent to tarnish his public image ahead of significant political events. They emphasized that there was no factual basis or official investigation linking their client to the crime, making the campaign a clear act of character assassination.
Political Repercussions and Next Steps
This court order brings to the forefront the escalating use of social media as a tool for political mudslinging and the legal ramifications thereof. The interim relief protects Gautam's reputation temporarily, but the final outcome will be determined in the subsequent hearings. The case highlights the delicate balance between political criticism and legally actionable defamation.
The court has also issued formal notices to both the Congress and the AAP, seeking their official responses to the allegations made in the defamation suit. All parties are expected to present their arguments in detail on the next date of hearing. The directive serves as a stern reminder to political entities about the potential consequences of unverified allegations circulated on digital platforms.
As the matter is sub-judice, the political discourse surrounding the case is likely to be influenced by the judicial proceedings. The September 18 hearing will be crucial in determining whether the interim order is made absolute and how the court views the nature of the contested social media campaign.
