Supreme Court has halted defamation proceedings against Shashi Tharoor

On Tuesday, the Supreme Court paused the criminal defamation case initiated by a BJP leader against Congress MP Shashi Tharoor , regarding his comments about Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Tharoor had appealed to the Court after the Delhi High Court rejected his request to dismiss the case on August 29. Justices Hrishikesh Roy and R. Mahadevan issued a notice on Tharoor’s appeal and put the proceedings on hold. A bench of Justices Hrishikesh Roy and R Mahadevan issued notice on his appeal and stayed the proceedings.

Also Read : Drunk Driver Claims Life of MNS Worker’s Wife

Suspends Defamation Case Against Shashi Tharoor

Representing the senior Congress leader, Advocate Mohammed Ali Khan told the court that Tharoor had merely quoted an article from Caravan Magazine published in 2012, which included a remark attributed to an unnamed RSS leader comparing Narendra Modi to “a scorpion sitting on a Shivling.” Justice Roy noted that the comment was a metaphor indicating the person’s perceived invincibility. “Ultimately, it’s a metaphor. The metaphor signifies the invincibility of the person which is being described. This metaphor can’t be understood as highlighting the invincibility of that individual .

Also Read : Centre Issues Directive Over Mpox Outbreak

Case Seeks to Overturn April 2019 Summons

Shashi Tharoor moved a plea before the Delhi High Court in 2020 challenging defamation proceedings against him based on a complaint by BJP leader Rajiv Babbar, who was vice-president of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s Delhi unit. The Congress leader challenged the summons issued to him by a magisterial trial court in the case and setting aside the order dated April 27, 2019. Justice Roy said that he doesen’t know why somebody has taken objection to this”.

Also Read : Overcoming Adversity on Path to Paris Paralympics 2024