MeToo: Disclosure of sexual harassment was for public good, Priya Ramani tells court
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Kharge rules out Chief Minister change in Karnataka 'for now'
Kalaburgai (Karnataka) (PTI): AICC President Mallikarjun Kharge on Thursday said there was no Chief Minister change in Karnataka "for now" and that the leadership issue in the state will be resolved soon.
The Congress chief's statement comes amid speculations within the party and political circles about a possible decision on leadership change and cabinet reshuffle after May 4, once the results for assembly elections in four states and one union territory, along with bypolls to two assembly segments in Karnataka, are announced.
Supporters of Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar have been insisting on his elevation in lines with a rumoured power-sharing agreement with CM Siddaramaiah when the party won the 2023 Assembly polls.
"You (media), he (Parameshwara) and people at the top say that it is better if I become (the chief minister). But, more than fate, as per my ideology and as per my service to the party so far, Sonia Gandhi takes decisions regarding me," he said in response to a question about Home Minister G Parameshwara's statement about Kharge becoming the CM.
Speaking to reporters here, he said, "But, that question does not arise now. There is already a Chief Minister here. If Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and I, together, have to take any decision in the direction of a change, it will take some time. Let's wait and see."
Amid speculations about the leadership change in Karnataka, Parameshwara said on Wednesday that everyone in the ruling Congress party will welcome, if Kharge, a senior politician with a lot of experience, becomes the chief minister.
The leadership tussle within the ruling party has intensified amid speculation about a possible change of chief minister after the Congress government completed the halfway mark of its five-year term on November 20, 2025. The speculation has been fuelled by the reported "power-sharing" arrangement between Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar at the time of government formation in 2023.
To a question on JD(S) leader and Union Minister H D Kumaraswamy's statement that about 40 Congress MLAs having booked tickets to Delhi next month, amid the leadership tussle in the Congress, Kharge said, "I don't know, ask him for details."
New Delhi: Journalist Priya Ramani told a Delhi court on Saturday that her remarks alleging sexual harassment by former Union minister M J Akbar were her truth which she disclosed in "good faith" for the "public good" and, therefore, do not amount to defamation.
Ramani submitted this before Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Vishal Pahuja through her lawyer during the final hearing of a private criminal defamation complaint filed by Akbar against her.
During the #MeToo movement, Ramani in 2018 accused Akbar of sexual misconduct around 20 years ago when he was a journalist.
Akbar resigned as Union minister on October 17, 2018.
Senior advocate Rebecca John, appearing for Ramani, told the court on Saturday that as per law it is not defamation to impute anything which is true concerning any person if it is for the public good.
A true imputation made in the public good is not defamation... it is not defamation to make an imputation on the character of another when it is made in good faith for the protection of his or other's interest, she told the court during a virtual hearing.
John further said that Priya Ramani's alleged defamatory tweets and the Vogue article were her truth. I am saying this is my (Ramani's) truth... it is the truth, is in good faith, touching public good.
The court will further hear the arguments on September 8.
Akbar had earlier told the court that Ramani had defamed him by using adjectives such as 'media's biggest predator' against him that harmed his reputation.
M J Akbar has denied all the allegations of sexual harassment against the women who came forward during the #MeToo campaign against him.
Akbar had told the court that the allegations made in an article in the 'Vogue' and the subsequent tweets were defamatory on the face of it as the complainant had deposed them to be false and imaginary and that immediate damage was caused to him due to the false allegations by Priya Ramani.
Ramani had earlier told the court that her disclosure of alleged sexual harassment by Akbar has come at a great personal cost and she had nothing to gain from it.
She had said her move would empower women to speak up and make them understand their rights at the workplace.
Several women came up with accounts of the alleged sexual harassment by M J Akbar him while they were working as journalists under him.
He has termed the allegations false, fabricated and deeply distressing and said he was taking appropriate legal action against them.