Vikas Bahl files Rs 10 crore defamation suit against Kashyap, Motwane
Mumbai, Oct 17 : Filmmaker Vikas Bahl, accused of sexual assault by a former employee of Phantom Films, has filed a Rs 10 crore defamation suit against Anurag Kashyap and Vikramaditya Motwane, his former partners in the production house.
The court, during the hearing Wednesday, directed Bahl to make the woman employee a respondent to the suit and adjourned the hearing to October 19.
Bahl, the director of Kangana Ranaut-starrer "Queen", has sought an interim direction from the court seeking to restrain Kashyap and Motwane from making any statements, either to the media or on social media platforms, against him.
The suit, filed Tuesday, alleged that Kashyap and Motwane made "defamatory, slanderous and baseless allegations" against him due to which he has suffered irreversible damage to the reputation.
It demanded damages of Rs 10 crore from Kashyap and Motwane.
He labelled his former partners as opportunists, who allegedly orchestrated the whole campaign against him, making him look like the person responsible for the production house's fall.
Justice S J Kathawalla, who heard arguments on Bahl's application for interim order, asked if the parties were open to sort out the issue amicably.
"Is there any way to end this matter? Just check if the parties are willing for this," he asked the lawyers.
The court also directed Bahl to make the woman who has levelled allegations against him a respondent to the application, saying it was pertinent to hear her too.
Justice Kathawalla directed Bahl, Kashyap, Motwane and the woman to appear in person in his chamber on Friday, when the matter would be heard.
Bahl's counsel Sharan Jagtiani argued that even after the alleged incident, the woman was in touch with Bahl.
To this, Kashyap's counsel Venkatesh Dhond said Bahl cannot trivialise the woman's allegations on this ground, as she had to continue working with Phantom Films.
Justice Kathawalla, while adjourning the matter, noted that while the #MeToo movement was good, there should be guidelines in place so that authorities know how to handle such cases.
The judge passed no order on Bahl's plea. Phantom Films was established in 2011 by Kashyap, Motwane, Bahl and producer Madhu Mantena.
The company's productions include "Lootera", "Hasee Toh Phasee" and the blockbuster "Queen".
Soon after Bahl was named by a former employee of Phantom Films amid the MeToo campaign, Kashyap and Motwane dissolved the production house.
The unidentified woman employee alleged that Bahl sexually assaulted her in Goa during a promotional tour for the movie "Bombay Velvet" in 2015.
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Delhi LG 'praises' CM Atishi, calls her 'thousand times better than her predecessor' Kejriwal
New Delhi, Nov 22: In a left-handed compliment to Delhi Chief Minister Atishi, Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena on Friday said she is "a thousand times better" than her predecessor Arvind Kejriwal.
At the seventh convocation ceremony of the Indira Gandhi Delhi Technical University for Women here, Saxena said, "I am happy today that Delhi's CM is a woman, and I can confidently say that she is a thousand times better than her predecessor."
While making the comment, he took a glance at Atishi who also addressed the students.
The AAP and BJP have been at loggerheads over a range of issues, including governance and control of bureaucracy. Kejriwal tendered his resignation in September and said he would seek a "certificate of honesty" from the public in light of the corruption charges he faced. Atishi succeeded him as the chief minister.
Last year, Saxena ignored the AAP government's request to allow Atishi, who was then the education minister to hoist the national flag at the state-level Independence Day event.
A row brewed over the issue with the Aam Aadmi Party lashing out at Saxena after the General Administration Department refused to implement Minister Gopal Rai's direction to let Atishi hoist the tricolour in place of former then Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal who was in the jail in the excise policy scam.
In his speech, Saxena told the students, "As you move ahead, you have four guiding stars. First is your responsibility towards yourself, the second is your responsibility towards your parents and family while the third responsibility is towards the society and nation-building."
"The fourth responsibility is to prove yourself as women who have broken the glass ceiling of gender and stand on par with others in all fields," he said.
Kejriwal had proposed Atishi's name as the chief minister at a meeting of the legislature party and it was unanimously accepted.
When she took charge of the office, Atishi kept an empty chair besides hers for Kejriwal.
Addressing at the event, Atishi reflected on the progress made in the education sector under the AAP government.
"Education is the key to development. Take the example of the US, Canada, or the UK. They provided free education and schooling, and that is why they are developed countries today."
"Ten years ago, when we formed the government here, we saw the same dream. Since then, we have been spending 25 percent of our education budget on improving the sector," she said.
