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2017 Supreme(P&H) 2550
IN THE HIGH COURT OF PUNJAB AND HARYANA
RAJ MOHAN SINGH, J.
VARINDER SINGH – Appellant
Vs.
BIKRAM SINGH MAJITHIA – Respondent
CRM-M No. 30878 of 2015 (O&M)
Decided on : 01-06-2017
For the Appellant :N.B. Joshi and Manu K. Bhandari, Advocates
For the Respondent:R.K. Handoo, D.S. Sobti and Manish Shukla, Advocates
IMPORTANT POINT
Defamation – Defamatory statement made without any lawful justification would rise to actionable claim
Headnote:(A) Constitution of India, 1950, Article 19(1)(a) – Defamation – Held; Fundamental right to freedom and speech and accession is pitted against the right of individual to have its reputation intact – Law of limitation seek to maintain a balance he know those true – Defamatory statement made without any lawful justification would rise to actionable claim – Indian Penal Code, 1860, S.499.
(B) Indian Penal Code, 1860, S.499 – Defamation – Quashing – Alleged defamatory articles published in news papers – Held; "Good Faith" and "Public Good" are the questions of fact and are dependent upon evidence and trial would be required in any case – Defence available in context of exceptions to section 499 IPC would be available at an appropriate time – Petition dismissed.
(C) Indian Penal Code, 1860, S.499 – Defamation – Quashing – Essential ingredients are –
(i) making or publishing any imputation consisting of any person;
(ii) such imputation must have been made by the use of words either written, spoken or visible; and
(iii) such imputation must be made with an intention to cause harm or with the knowledge or having reasons to believe that it will harm the reputation of the concerned.
Raj Mohan Singh, J.
Vide this common order CRM-M Nos. 30878, 30999 and 35829 of 2015 are being decided as these petitions have arisen out of similar controversy.
2. Petitioners have filed the present petitions under section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, 1973 for quashing criminal complaint No. 105 dated 27.04.2015 under Sections 500, 501, 502, 120-B IPC and order dated 27.07.2015 vide which the petitioners have been summoned to appear as an accused in the aforesaid case.
3. Since common question of law and facts are involved in these petitions, therefore, facts are being taken from CRM-M No. 30878 of 2015.
4. Brief facts are that the respondent filed a complaint under Section 190 Cr.P.C., 1973 for the offence under Section 499 IPC read with Section 500, 501, 502, 120-B IPC with the allegations that news item dated 25.11.2014 captioned as "All Powerful Minister Majithia and his three NRI Musketeers", news item dated 11.03.2015 captioned as "Majithia collected money from three N.R.Is, says ED Probe" and news item captioned as "Majithia in the Soup?" got published by the accused respondents in the daily newspaper 'The Tribune' were defamatory and were published by the accused intentionally without any due care and caution knowing fully well that the imputations contained in the news item were false, frivolous and defamatory. Respondent/complainant alleged that the accused/respondents got the news published thereby making allegations that the complainant had links with the international drug mafia/operatives. The use of words and sentences in the aforesaid publications were intentionally made so as to sensationalise such defamatory publication. The captioned news items were intended to portray that the complainant was patronizing Canada based N.R.Is as drug peddlers whenever they visited India on their 'pseudo ephedrine procurement jaunt'. The publication has portrayed the complainant in a very poor light by alleging a Syndicate of international drug operatives being close links with the persons named in the news items.
5. Complainant further alleged that the tone and tenor of the publication were only to portray the complainant as head of a Syndicate allegedly operating drug peddling racket. In order to give flavour to the imputations, cut out picture of the complainant was also pasted on the news item without the consent of the complainant in order to magnify the intensity and impact of such portraying. In order to cause extreme harm in political career of the complainant, the use of words like 'Musketeer' and 'Soup' made the news so catchy and scandalous that the complainant was shown in an extreme poor light in the eyes of his friends and well wishers. Such ridiculous and extreme defamatory publications had created impediment in the discharge of public functions by the complainant as Revenue Minister of State of Punjab. The publications were made without any verification of fact and were intended to disclose the complainant by artificially giving semblance of coherence to disjoint and false facts, with the intention to lower the image of the complainant in the estimation of his friends, supporters and public at large. The publications have demolished the clean image of the complainant and as a result of such publications, many persons called the complainant from all walks of life after believing the malicious news to be true. Complainant felt imminent threat of disassociation of those persons in terms of his political career and suffered an irreparable loss of personal, social and political reputation.
6. The cumulative assertion of defamatory publications alleged by the complainant is reproduced here as under:-
"....All powerful Minister Majithia and his three NRI Musketeers.”
"Majithia 'Collected money' From 3 N.R.Is, says ED probe. Varinder Singh, Tribune News Service, Chandigarh/Patiala Punjab Revenue Minister Bikram Singh Majithia, who is in the eye of a storm for his alleged links with "international drug oper
