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NEENA BANSAL KRISHNA
Major General M. S. Ahluwalia – Appellant
Versus
Tehelka. Com – Respondent
JUDGMENT
Neena Bansal Krishna, J.
1. Truth is considered to be the best vindication against slander as wisely quoted by Abraham Lincoln. Yet, truth lacks the potency to restore the reputation that one loses in eyes of a society which is always quick to judge. The disconsolate reality is that wealth lost can always be earned back; howbeit, the scar to one's repute once etched in the soul, yields nothing but forlorn even if millions are granted in reparation. Such is the predicament of the plaintiff who claims to have suffered from loss of reputation due to the reckless reporting by defendant Nos. 1 to 4, which has compelled him to file the present suit for damages to claim a compensation of Rs.2,00,00,000/- as a bow to fate.
2. The plaintiff a General Officer in Army with record of impeccable integrity for 36 years was working as Addl. Director General, Ordnance Services (Technical Stores) in Army Head Quarters since 16th April, 1999 and was responsible for overseeing the functioning of Central Depots for Technical Stores, ammunition and procurement of indigenous equipment primarily for ex Directorate General Ordnance Factory and Public Sector Undertakings. The plaintiff has claime
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The court affirmed that statements made in a political context, which do not impute dishonourable conduct, are protected under the defences of fair comment and reportage.
The right to free expression by the press is not absolute and must be balanced against an individual's right to privacy and reputation; defamatory statements must be substantiated.
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