SC stays Delhi government's defamation circular

The Supreme Court on Thursday stayed a controversial circular issued by the Delhi government asking officials to identify news reports with “defamatory imputation” against the chief minister and other colleagues for criminal actions under the penal law.

A bench of Justices Dipak Misra and Prafulla C Pant questioned the Delhi government for the May 6 circular allowing invoking of the penal laws whose validity was challenged by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal himself.

“Why this circular by the government, anyone affected (by news reports) can file defamation in individual capacity...we issue notice, you file a response. What is this policy? Who is that authority (the official who issued the order),” the bench told senior advocate Arvind Datar, representing the Delhi government.

Senior advocates Abhishek M Singhvi and Sidharth Luthra, representing Amit Sibal, urged the court to vacate the stay granted in criminal defamation case filed by son of former union minister Kapil Sibal against Kejriwal for making defamatory statements in view of contradictory stands taken by the AAP government.