Saket Gokhale Moves Delhi High Court Seeking Recall Of Order Asking Him To Apologize, Compensate Lakshmi Puri For Defamation

The Delhi High Court on Thursday issued notice on an application filed by Trinamool Congress MP Saket Gokhale in relation to a ruling asking him to put an apology on social media and pay Rs. 50 lakh damages to Lakshmi Puri, former Indian Assistant Secretary-General to the United Nations, in her defamation suit against him.

Gokhale has sought recall of an order passed by a coordinate bench on July 01 last year.

Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav sought response of Puri in Gokhale's application for condonation of delay in seeking his relief. The application has been moved in the defamation suit filed in 2021.

The Court said that it would consider the issue of recall of the verdict in question if the TMC leader is able to satisfy the Court on the aspect of delay.

During the hearing today, Gokhale's counsel submitted that the ruling was passed by the coordinate bench ex parte, in his absence, after his lawyer stopped appearing in the defamation lawsuit.

On the other hand, the plea was opposed by Puri's counsel who submitted that Gokhale was put to due notice before the ruling was delivered by the coordinate bench.

Justice Kaurav told Gokhale's lawyer that the fact that his counsel was not appearing before the coordinate bench was his responsibility and that it was not like he was not aware of the court proceedings.

However, the Court suggested and requested both Gokhale and Puri to try and resolve the matter.

“I request both of you…if possible…try to resolve it, else come back,” the Court said.

In December last year, Puri had moved a contempt plea alleging that Gokhale failed to comply with the last year ruling. She sought execution of the judgment in question. Gokhale was then directed to file an affidavit disclosing all his assets, properties and bank accounts The matter is pending consideration before the coordinate bench.

The defamation suit was filed by Puri being aggrieved by Gokhale's tweets referring to a property purchased by her in Switzerland. In the tweets, Gokhale raised questions regarding her and her husband, Union Minister Hardeep Puri's assets. He had also tagged Finance Minister Nirmala Sitaraman in the tweets and sought an ED inquiry.

In the judgment, a coordinate bench, while decreeing the suit in favour of Puri, asked Gokhale to put an apology in Times of India. He was also directed to put the apology on his Twitter handle, which has to stay for 6 months.

Quoting William Shakespeare's Othello in the judgment, the court had held Gokhale was making “roving allegations” against Lakshmi Puri and her husband Hardeep Puri.

The suit contended that Gokhale's tweets were false and defamatory. It was Puri's case that the tweets were “maliciously motivated and designed accordingly, laced with canards and entail deliberate twisting of facts”.

In July 2021, a coordinate bench ruled in favour of Puri while deciding the interim injunction application in the suit.

The court had then directed Gokhale to take down the tweets in question within 24 hours. He was also restrained from posting any further defamatory material against Puri.

Title: LAKSHMI MURDESHWAR PURI v. SAKET GOKHALE