Mumbai Court Refuses To Discharge Uddhav Thackeray, MP Sanjay Raut In Defamation Case By Shinde Faction MP Rahul Shewale

A Metropolitan Magistrates Court in Mumbai rejected the discharge applications of Shiv Sena (UBT) leaders Uddhav Thackeray and MP Sanjay Raut in a defamation complaint filed by MP Rahul Shewale, their former ally.

The complaint was filed over an article published in the Sena mouthpiece ‘Saamana’ on December 29, 2022 pertaining to Shewale’s alleged real estate dealings. While Thackeray is the Chief Editor, Raut is the Executive Editor of Saamna.

Additional Metropolitan Magistrate Sewree SB Kale refused to discharge the duo. A copy of the order is yet to be made available.

Having summoned and recorded Thackeray and Raut’s statements and released them on bail in August, the matter is now kept next month for recoding of the complainant’s evidence.

Shewale is an MP from the Mumbai’s south-central constituency from the rebel Shiv Sena faction led by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde.

He filed the complaint for offences punishable under sections 500 (punishment for defamation) and 501 (printing or engraving matter knowing it to be defamatory) of the IPC for publishing 'defamatory articles' against him in the Marathi and Hindi editions of 'Saamana'.

In the complaint, filed through advocate Chitra Salunke, Shewale alleged that the article from December 29, 2022 wrongly stated he had a real estate business in Karachi.

Initially the magistrate directed a police investigation into the complaint under section 202 of the CrPC. Following this summons were issued under section 204 of the CrPC.

"The complainant strongly refuted all the allegations made in the said articles and categorically stated that this is merely a feeble attempt to damage the reputation and political career of the complainant by levelling false accusations against him to malign his image before the public at large," the complaint read.The articles were a "concocted story, "devoid of any merits" and a classic example of "vendetta journalism", it added.

In their discharge plea the duo maintained their innocence. They asserted that they have been falsely accused assuming they had a direct say in Saamna.

They contended that the case was filed presuming they controlled the matter selected for publication. However, it was the Assistant editor Atul Joshi who oversaw the selection process.

"In this case, Atul Joshi is the Assistant Editor and controls the selection of news in Saamna," their application read.