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PUNJAB AND HARYANA HIGH COURT AT CHANDIGARH
TRIBHUVAN DAHIYA
Rajesh Ramachandran – Appellant
Versus
State Of Punjab – Respondent
JUDGMENT :
Tribhuvan Dahiya, J.
These petitions have been filed under Section 482 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (Cr.P.C.) for quashing of criminal complaint no.177/2019, dated 30.07.2019, titled Nazar Singh Manshahia v. Bhagwant Mann and others, under Sections 500 and 120-B of IPC read with Sections 66 and 67 of the Information Technology Act, Annexure P-2, as also the order dated 14.12.2020, Annexure P-3, passed by Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM), Mansa, whereby petitioners no.l in CRM-M-3815-2021 and CRM-M-3907-2021, namely, Rajesh Ramachandran and Dr. Swaraj Bir Singh, respectively, have been summoned to face trial for commission of offences punishable under Sections 500, 501 and 502 IPC, and petitioners no.2 in both these petitions, namely, Parvesh Sharma and Gurdeep Singh Lali (wrongly mentioned in the complaint as Gurpreet Singh Thind Lally), respectively, have been summoned under Section 500 IPC.
2. At the time of passing the impugned order, petitioner no.l in CRM-M-3815-2021, namely, Rajesh Ramachandran was working as Editor of newspaper 'The Tribune (English)', and petitioner no.2-Parvesh Sharma was working as its Principal Correspondent, posted at district Sangrur. Petit
Court must prevent unjust legal proceedings; defamation requires intention to harm, not met as the news article was factual.
The court held that a news report published in good faith, including the complainant's version, does not constitute defamation under IPC Sections 499-501.
The publication of defamatory statements without substantiation violates the rights of the affected person, and intention or knowledge regarding reputational harm suffices for establishing defamation....
A lack of governmental consent under Section 196(2) Cr.P.C. does not bar prosecution for defamation offences, emphasizing the media's role in reporting on public matters.
The court established that for a defamation claim under IPC Sections 499 and 500, the publication must lower the reputation of the complainant, and the truth of the statements must be proven in their....
Defamation requires specific allegations and evidence of reputational harm; failure to conduct a mandatory inquiry before issuing summons renders the proceedings invalid.
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