New Delhi: The Supreme Court has said that the time has come to decriminalize defamation law. It also agreed to consider a petition filed by the Foundation for Independent Journalism seeking quashing of the summons issued to it in a criminal defamation case.
A bench of Justices M.M. Sundaresh and Satish Chandra Sharma issued notice to former Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) professor Amita Singh. The Supreme Court made this observation while hearing a petition filed by the organization that runs The Wire news portal and its political affairs editor, Ajay Ashirwad Mahaprastha.
Challenge to the summons order
Justice Sundaresh orally remarked, “I think the time has come to decriminalize all this…” The court was hearing a petition challenging the lower court’s summons order issued to the former JNU professor in a defamation case filed by her over the publication of a dossier.
Complainant’s Argument
The complainant argued in the lower court that the accused had launched a hate campaign against him to tarnish his reputation. This is the second round of litigation over the alleged defamatory report published by the portal.
High Court Also Issued Summons
Previously, the Delhi High Court had quashed the summons issued to him in 2023. However, the Supreme Court reversed the order and sent the case back to the lower court for a fresh hearing. The lower court re-issued summons, which the High Court also upheld.
