MANMOHAN, J.

I.As. 6674/2017, 8809/2017 and 10378/2017

1. Present suit has been filed seeking compensation and damages from and against the defendants for making defamatory remarks against the plaintiff as well as for permanent and prohibitory injunction restraining the defendants from reporting any news or broadcasting any show related to the death of Mrs. Sunanda Pushkar till the investigation is complete and also to restrain the defendants from maligning and defaming the plaintiff in any manner.

2. With consent of parties, the three interim applications being I.A. Nos. 6674/2017, 8809/2017 and 10378/2017 were taken up for hearing and disposal.

RELIEFS IN I.A. 6674/2017

3. In I.A. 6674/2017 under Order 39 Rules 1 and 2 CPC accompanying the suit, the plaintiff prays for the following reliefs:-

"(A) Grant an ad interim ex-parte injunction in favour of the Plaintiff and against the Defendants for restraining the Defendants from reporting any news or broadcasting any show related to the death of the Deceased till the pendency of the present proceedings;

(B) Grant an ad interim ex-parte injunction in favour of the Plaintiff and against the Defendants for restraining the Defendants from maligning and defaming the Plaintiff in any manner; and

(C) Pass such other and further Orders as may be deemed appropriate by this Hon'ble Court."

HEARING ON 29th MAY, 2017

4. On 29th May, 2017, this Court after hearing both the parties orally observed that the defendants can air stories containing facts relating to investigation into Mrs. Sunanda Pushkar's death, but cannot call the plaintiff a criminal or condemn him as guilty. This Court had also stated that the defendants must bring down the rhetoric. At that stage, Mr. Sandeep Sethi, learned senior counsel appearing for the defendants had stated that he would advise his clients accordingly. Consequently, the Court did not pass any formal order.

RELIEFS IN I.A. 8809/2017

5. During the pendency of the proceedings, the plaintiff filed another interlocutory application under Order 39 Rules 1 and 2 CPC being I.A. 8809/2017 praying for the following reliefs:-

"(a) Direct the Defendants not to make any defamatory publications against the Plaintiff in any manner;

(b) Direct the Defendants not to cast aspersions on the Plaintiff and not to state or imply that the Plaintiff is directly or indirectly responsible for the death of the Deceased.

(c) Direct the Defendants to refrain from indulging in misleading news reporting in any form whatsoever;

(d) Direct the Defendants to not post any material related to the present Civil Suit on its Twitter, Facebook and any other social media website;

(e) Direct the Defendants to refrain from misrepresenting the facts of the case and broadcasting outright lies and to confine their reporting only to the established facts as reported by the Police and accepted in a Court;

(f) Direct the Defendants not to mention the expression "Murder of Sunanda Pushkar" anywhere since it is yet to be established by a competent Court of law that the death of the Deceased was a 'Murder', in order to ensure that the Trial of the case is not prejudiced;

(g) Direct the Defendants to refrain from inciting their journalists or guests on their channel to assume criminal guilt on the basis of their false assertions;

(h) Direct the Defendants to refrain from posting or reporting any content which is contrary to the assurance which was given by the Counsel for the Defendants on the first date of hearing, i.e., on 29.05.2017; and

(i) Pass such other and further order(s) as this Hon'ble Court may deem fit and appropriate herein.

HEARING ON 04th AUGUST, 2017

6. The aforesaid application was filed on the ground that despite the assurance given by learned senior counsel for defendants on 29th May, 2017, the defendants continued to engage in defaming and maligning the plaintiff. Learned senior counsel for pl