Farmers' protest remark: SC to hear actor Kangana's plea for quashing defamation case on Sep 12
New Delhi (PTI): The Supreme Court would on September 12 hear the plea of actor and BJP MP Kangana Ranaut challenging the high court's refusal to quash a case against her for allegedly making defamatory remarks in connection with the 2020-21 farmer protests.
A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta is scheduled to hear the matter.
The actor-turned-politician challenged the defamation case which stemmed from her retweet consisting of her own comment about a woman protestor during the 2020-21 farmer protests against the now repealed farm laws.
The complaint was filed by Mahinder Kaur (73), who hails from Bahadurgarh Jandian village in Punjab's Bathinda district in 2021.
Her complaint in a Bathinda court said the actor made "false imputations and remarks" against her in a retweet by saying she was the same "dadi" namely Bilkis Bano, who was part of the Shaheen Bagh protest.
"There are specific allegations against the petitioner who is a celebrity, that false and defamatory imputations by her in the retweet have dented the respondent's reputation and lowered her in her own estimation, as also in the eyes of others. Therefore, filing of the complaint to vindicate her rights cannot be termed mala fide," the Punjab and Haryana High Court said in its August 1 order, dismissing Ranaut's plea.
"... A reading of the impugned order as a whole, makes it apparent that the Magistrate (Bathinda court) has duly applied mind to the material on record, and only after recording satisfaction that commission of offence under Sections 499 IPC is prima facie made out against the petitioner, the process has been issued..," the order read.
The petition was filed before the high court under Section 482 of the erstwhile CrPC for quashing the complaint filed under Section 499/500 of the now repealed IPC and also the summoning order of February 22, 2022 by the trial court.
Kaur said she was also a part of dharnas (sit-ins) and demonstrations since the beginning of the farmers protest in 2020-21 against now repealed farm laws.
Despite her old age, she along with other protesters went to Delhi to participate in the agitation.
Kaur said she had absolutely no concern with the woman (dadi) from Shaheen Bagh who featured in the 'Time' magazine, with whom she had been compared in the tweet.
It was alleged in this manner, the petitioner Ranaut made "false imputation and defamatory remarks against the complainant hurting her pride, honour, and defaming her on social media".
Kaur filed the complaint in Bathinda in January 2021.
Kangana's counsel argued in the high court that the summoning order of the Bathinda court was not sustainable being violative of criminal procedure code.
After recording of preliminary evidence by the complainant, the magistrate called for a report from director, Twitter Communications India Private Limited (TCIPL), and he could not have summoned the petitioner as the report was never received, it was argued.
It was also contended that Ranaut had no intention to harm the complainant's reputation.
Justice Dahiya, in his order, observed, "...Non-receipt of report by TCIPL as to whether the alleged retweet has been made by the petitioner, cannot be a ground to divest the Magistrate (of court in Bathinda) of jurisdiction under Section 202 CrPC. The report could not be submitted as the company was neither the owner nor in control of twitter.com, and was a separate entity engaged only in research, development and marketing."
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Late flourish masks CSK’s batting woes on lively Chepauk track, hosts post 158/7
Chennai (PTI): Bowlers calling the shots in a format dominated by big hitters is a rarity, but that script played out at Chepauk on Sunday as Gujarat Titans exploited a lively, bounce-friendly surface to stifle Chennai Super Kings before the hosts managed a late flourish to reach 158 for 7.
On a pitch that offered sharp carry, stroke-making demanded discretion and adaptability. Instead, CSK’s batters often opted for high-risk shots without fully assessing conditions, and paid the price with a flurry of miscued dismissals.
Invited to bat, CSK never quite found rhythm but skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad’s maiden half-century (74 not out) of the current IPL season lent a semblance of respectability to the total in a season where 200-plus scores have become commonplace.
Gaikwad's knock came off 60 balls with six fours and four sixes after a laboured start.
The tone was set early by GT pacer Mohammed Siraj, who extracted steep bounce and forced errors.
Sanju Samson (11) began watchfully, negotiating the first over before opening up against Kagiso Rabada to bring up his 5000 IPL runs milestone. However, Rabada’s bounce soon accounted for him as a hard slash outside off resulted in a faint edge that Jos Buttler pouched safely.
The dismissal triggered a collapse. Urvil Patel (4) fell in the same Rabada over attempting an ambitious pull, while Sarfaraz Khan (0) succumbed to Siraj’s extra lift, mistiming a short ball to offer a simple catch.
At 28 for 3 inside the Powerplay, CSK were already in trouble.
Gaikwad and Dewald Brevis (2) needed to rebuild, but the latter’s impatience against spinner Manav Suthar led to his downfall, holing out after failing to get to the pitch of the ball.
The mounting wickets forced Gaikwad into a shell — an approach that, while understandable, further stalled the momentum. His reluctance to improvise allowed dot balls to pile up, with CSK reaching 50 only in the 12th over.
The skipper eventually broke free, taking on Arshad Khan and Jason Holder with a couple of towering sixes, but the acceleration came too late.
Shivam Dube, dropped thrice on 6, 11 and 22, struggled for fluency before Arshad cleaned him up.
Kartik Sharma (15) and Jamie Overton (18) provided late impetus with a few lusty hits, but the damage had already been done.
On a pitch that rewarded discipline and smart shot selection, Titans' bowlers executed their plans to perfection, while CSK’s batters failed to read the conditions in time, a lapse that ultimately defined the innings.
