O R D E R

Dated this the 14^th day of November, 2025 The petitioner challenges Annexure-3 Order of the Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Ernakulam, which declined the petitioner's request for a copy of the pen drive produced by the complainant in a private complaint. In C.C.No.95/2023, the offences alleged are under Section 500 of the Penal Code . The defacto complainant in the private complaint produced a pen drive containing the alleged defamatory statement alleged to have been made by the petitioner/accused. Needless to say that the defacto complainant wants to rely on that document, in respect of which aspect, there is no quarrel. The petitioner/accused applied for a copy of the pen drive, which, however, was refused vide Annexure-3 impugned Order stating that the contents of the defamatory statement have been reproduced in the complaint, besides the same being available in the public domain.

2. When this matter was taken up for consideration today, the same is the objection raised by the learned counsel for the respondent/defacto complainant. It was pointed out that the contents of the defamatory statement have received wide publicity and the same is available on social me