Delhi HC Rejects Saket Gokhale's Plea To Recall Defamation Damages, To Pay Rs 50 Lakh
Last Updated:
Puri had approached the high court in 2021, alleging Gokhale tarnished her goodwill and reputation by making reckless and false allegations about her financial affairs.
The Delhi High Court on Friday refused to recall its order directing TMC MP Saket Gokhale to pay damages of Rs 50 lakh to former diplomat Lakshmi Murdeshwar Puri for defamation.
Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav also junked Gokhale's plea to condone a delay of over 180 days in seeking the relief.
"We can't help you. We have to reject both the applications," the judge said.
Justice Kaurav said no explanation was offered for the delay in approaching the court.
Puri had approached the high court in 2021, alleging Gokhale tarnished her goodwill and reputation by making reckless and false allegations about her financial affairs in the context of an apartment that she owned in Geneva.
In the July 1, 2024 verdict, aside from directing publication of an apology and payment of Rs 50 lakh as damages, the high court restrained Gokhale from publishing any more content on any social media or electronic platform concerning his imputation against Puri.
Puri was represented by senior advocate Maninder Singh and law firm Karanjawala & Co.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Hindustan Times
an hour ago
- Hindustan Times
Delhi HC refuses relief to man given 182-yr term for defrauding 344 homebuyers
The Delhi High Court has refused to grant relief to a 75-year-old former director of a property firm facing an extraordinary 182-year prison sentence for defrauding 344 homebuyers, upholding the authority of a consumer forum to impose multiple consecutive jail terms in a landmark case. In a verdict delivered on May 30 and released Monday, Justice Neena Bansal Krishna dismissed the plea of Rajender Mittal, a director of Tirupati Builders Pvt Ltd, who had sought modification of the sentence imposed by a district consumer court. The court in 1995 had convicted Mittal for failing to refund booking amounts collected from buyers promised plots in a proposed residential colony—Tirupati Township—on Delhi's Baghpat Road. The Tirupati Township Plot Holders Association, representing over 300 homebuyers, accused Mittal and his co-director Rakesh Kumar Sharma of collecting ₹90.79 lakh for plots that were never delivered. On March 13, 1995, the district consumer forum ruled in the buyers' favour, directing the directors to refund the money with 18% annual interest, along with ₹20,000 in compensation and ₹500 in litigation costs to each complainant. The Supreme Court upheld the order in July 2011. The two directors, however, failed to comply with the refund order. In February 1998, the consumer forum invoked Section 27 of the Consumer Protection Act, 1986, which allows imprisonment for up to three years for non-compliance with forum orders. The forum sentenced Mittal and Sharma to one year of simple imprisonment in 20 complaints and six months in each of the remaining 324. Crucially, it directed the sentences to run consecutively—resulting in a combined term of 182 years. The sentence was suspended for three months to give the duo a final chance to comply. In 2003, the Delhi state consumer commission upheld this decision. Praying for his immediate release from prison, Mittal on December 1, 2020, challenged the sentence in the high court, arguing that since all complaints stemmed from the same transaction and were decided through a common order, the punishments should run concurrently. That would have limited his prison term to one year. He called the forum's decision 'excessive, arbitrary and illegal,' citing that the forum could not go beyond the maximum three-year sentence outlined in the Consumer Protection Act. Mittal also pointed to his incarceration in a separate criminal case. Arrested in 2016 after being declared a proclaimed offender, he was convicted in 2019 for cheating, criminal conspiracy, and criminal breach of trust. He was sentenced to five years for cheating, three years for breach of trust, and two years for conspiracy, with sentences running concurrently. He claimed to have already served over seven years in that case. But the high court was unmoved. Representing the Centre, advocate Udit Vaghela argued that the 1995 consumer forum order had attained finality after the Supreme Court's 2011 ruling and could not be reopened. Justice Krishna rejected Mittal's petition, ruling that the sentences were lawful and enforceable under Section 27, and since they were imposed for default of compliance rather than for criminal wrongdoing, they could not be made to run concurrently. She underlined that the punishment was not punitive, but a civil measure aimed at compelling compliance with the forum's directions. 'These sentences being for default of fine, cannot under the law be directed to run concurrently as it is not punitive in nature but only intended to ensure compliance,' held the judge, emphasising that no direction as sought by the petitioner could be issued under such circumstances. However, the court left a narrow window open: Mittal, the court said, was free to approach the district forum afresh on grounds of financial incapacity and seek a modified sentence there.
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
DoT's BSNL Ask of States may Hit Private Telcos
The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has written to the state governments to consider using the telecom services of state-run operators Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL), citing data security needs. Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads Tired of too many ads? Remove Ads The Department of Telecommunications (DoT) has written to the state governments to consider using the telecom services of state-run operators Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd (BSNL) and Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL), citing data security governments have from time to time mandated using services of state-run telcos on a project-wise basis, such a broad directive of sorts is unprecedented, said industry executives. If implemented, it could cost private telecom and internet service providers (ISPs) thousands of crores in potential annual revenue, they said, adding that the smallest players would be the hardest hit as they survive on wafer-thin from government contracts constitute a big part of the enterprise revenue of all private telcos and ISPs. The adjusted gross revenue of the telecom industry from April-December 2024 stood at Rs 2,23,799 crore, with private players accounting for more than 92% similar letters, dated April 8, addressed to the chief secretaries of all states and Union Territories, DoT secretary Neeraj Mittal said, 'As BSNL/MNL are becoming competitive in the telecom sector, and in light of the Cabinet decision in the past, I request you to consider utilisation of the services of BSNL and MTNL by all departments/agencies/PSUs (public sector undertakings) of the state government for internet/broadband, landline and leased line requirements.'ET has seen a copy of the added that BSNL — which now runs MTNL's operations as well — would dedicate a separate one-stop nodal point to provide the highest level of services to the state DoT's suggestion could lead to the private sector players missing out on lucrative and typically long-term government sector governments and PSUs give contracts to private players through a tendering process, and the final bidder is selected based on the lowest the DoT's letter distorts the historic level playing field, according to private players, with the government siding with one particular industry executive said the idea behind carving out BSNL and MTNL from the DoT as a separate entity was to let the company function independently and to ensure that the government did not act as a regulator as well as the owner.'The government has been supporting BSNL through various financial packages, and it should compete in the market on its strengths and not through preference,' said the executive, who did not wish to be president of the Internet Service Providers Association of India, Rajesh Chharia, told ET that the government, which is the licensor, should be non-partial towards licensees, whether government or semi-government or PSU or private, for healthy competition among them.'The objective of the government should be the proliferation of broadband and internet rather than promoting any particular service provider. This way other operators will get discouraged and will not come forward for any promotional activity of the country, and people will start questioning patriotism if this partiality is done by the government or department,' he the DoT said the move was approved by the Cabinet in 2019 while approving the revival package for BSNL and letter said 'the Union Cabinet inter-alia had approved the mandatory utilisation of capacities of BSNL and MTNL for internet, landline, and leased line requirements by the Central government, in view of the data security needs.' It further said, 'On similar lines, state governments were also requested to utilise the network capacities of BSNL for their telecom requirements.'So far, the government has invested about Rs 3.22 lakh crore in BSNL and MTNL as part of three revival packages since 2019, including the roll-out of 4G a result of the revival packages, BSNL has sustained revenue increases and for the first time since 2007-08, the company achieved a net profit of Rs 262 crore in the third quarter of 2024-25.'BSNL has accelerated capex investment in the last two years to upgrade its network and telecom infrastructure pan India. A massive investment has been made in transmission equipment and optical fibre cable network,' the letter said. 'The capex is expected to put BSNL on a higher revenue growth trajectory in the future.'
Time of India
an hour ago
- Time of India
Pune digital arrest case: Pimpri Chinchwad police arrest two with ‘mule' accounts
Pune: Pimpri Chinchwad police's cyber wing arrested two men from Ahilyanagar district on Monday, in connection with the alleged "digital arrest" of a 47-year-old Pune man who lost Rs 53 lakh to fraudsters. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Police claimed the arrested duo from Bolhegaon in Ahilyanagar district — one's a farmer while the other works at a finance company — allowed their bank accounts to be used as "mule accounts". Stolen money would be wired to their accounts and the duo would then withdraw the cash to hand it over to their handlers, the authorities alleged. "Their handler is also from the same village, but is currently based in Pune. Our investigations show the handler had created at least 20 mule accounts in this village. The details of these accounts were handed over to fraudsters based out of Maharashtra," said assistant inspector Pravin Swami, of Pimpri Chinchwad cyber police. The two men arrested on Monday were identified as Akash Pathare (28) and Avinash Tungar (27). They were held as the police investigate the complaint by a Moshi resident who said that on April 2 he received a "letter" via a messaging app that claimed his bank account was being used to launder money and that he faced arrest. One police official said: "The person at the other end told the Moshi resident he was an 'officer' with the Mumbai crime branch. He told the victim the cops and the bank needed to verify his bank account through a money transfer. The victim was even told the bank would return the money to him immediately after verification. Believing all this, the Moshi man transferred Rs 53 lakh to the three bank account numbers given to him. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now He never got the money back." Senior inspector Ravikiran Nale of Pimpri Chinchwad cyber police told TOI that during their investigation, they found Rs 5.4 lakh of the money was transferred to a private bank's account. "So we took the details of this account holder from the bank and found that it was in Ahilyanagar district. We arrested Pathare who revealed three more names. We then arrested Tungar. A search is on for the two others," Nale said.
