'Stop the media trial': Peter Haag and family issue legal notices to Celina Jaitly over defamation and child privacy concerns

In the latest development in the highly publicised legal battle between Bollywood actress Celina Jaitly and her estranged husband, Austrian hotelier Peter Haag, the Haag family has officially initiated a formal legal counter-offensive.

Representing them, Semwal & Co., Advocates & Solicitors, have confirmed the issuance and service of two separate legal notices by them to the actress, accusing her of a "sustained campaign of false, defamatory, misleading and sensationalised statements".

Aimed directly at statements circulating on media, digital platforms and social media, the legal notices serve as a counter-offensive by the Haag family.

The legal notices target narratives circulated across social media platforms, digital publications and international media outlets. This response comes amid concurrent criminal and matrimonial proceedings in India and Austria, where Jaitly has previously alleged physical, emotional, and financial abuse.

The legal intervention has been split into two distinct notices to protect both the extended family's reputation and the interests of the couple’s three minor children.

According to the notices, comprehensive matrimonial and child custody-related proceedings are actively pending before competent courts in Austria.

The family says that while they consciously refrained from public commentary for a considerable period to protect the children from media sensationalism, the continuous "amplification of unverified allegations" forced their hand into taking formal legal steps.

Further, the legal notices directly address and dispute severe portrayals of Peter Haag in recent media reports, which have portrayed him as abusive, violent, manipulative and emotionally oppressive, and the documents say that the family categorically denies all allegations relating to it.

The notices also say that the ongoing public narrative, including the publication of the minor children's names, photographs, and personal narratives, has subjected the kids to unnecessary public scrutiny and emotional distress during sensitive, active judicial proceedings. The family strongly condemned what they described as a "parallel media trial".

Meanwhile, the legal notices suggest that Celina Jaitly's public statements amount to defamation under Section 356 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, alongside the publication of malicious falsehoods, invasion of privacy, intentional infliction of emotional distress and interference with the administration of justice.

Solicitor Yesha Shah, Partner at Semwal & Co., did comment on the issue and issued strong concerns over the growing trend of converting private matrimonial disputes into public spectacles.

Shah said, "Laws enacted for the protection of women are among the most important safeguards in a civilized society. However, when matrimonial disputes are converted into public media trials through unverified allegations and emotional narratives, the very sanctity and purpose of such laws stand diluted. Legal remedies must remain instruments of justice and protection and not tools for public vilification or reputational destruction.”

The Haag family further said that if Celina fails to comply with the terms outlined in the legal notices, they reserve the right to initiate appropriate civil and criminal proceedings, including substantial claims for damages, compensation and injunctive relief before competent courts.

They concluded by saying that out of respect for the pending proceedings before the Austrian courts, no further public comments will be made.