Saket Gokhale agrees in Delhi HC to publish apology in Lakshmi Puri defamation case

New Delhi: Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Saket Gokhale on Friday submitted before the Delhi High Court that he would publish an apology in a defamation case for his alleged statements against former diplomat Lakshmi Murdeshwar Puri.

The submission was made after the court refused to allow Gokhale to publish an apology with any condition.

A bench of Justices Navin Chawla and Renu Bhatnagar listed on July 8 Gokhale's appeal challenging a single judge's July 1, 2024 judgment by which the TMC leader was restrained from publishing any more content on social media or electronic platforms against Puri, and directed him to apologise to her and pay Rs 50 lakh in damages.

During the brief hearing, the division bench made it clear that it could only stay the order part of Rs 50 lakh damages for now but there would not be any stay on publishing an apology.

"If it is only damages, we will stay it for the present. Apology can't be (stayed)," the bench said.

The bench also refused to accept the submission of senior advocate Amit Sibal that an apology can be published subject to a stay or that it would be subject to the orders of this court in the appeal.

"Then that's no apology. No, no question," the bench, while also refusing the submission that Gokhale would publish an apology with a statement that an appeal is pending.

Besides the July 1, 2024 order, Gokhale also challenged a single judge's May 9 order in Puri's contempt plea in which he was directed to publish the apology on his X handle, from which he had put out the offending tweets, and a prominent news daily within two weeks. The period of two weeks also expired on May 23.

Senior advocate Maninder Singh, representing Puri, informed the division bench about Gokhale's conduct of not adhering to the timelines fixed by single judges to issue a public apology.

He said no interim order be passed today and in the meantime, he will not press for damages in the execution proceedings filed by Puri.

During the hearing, Sibal along with advocate Naman Joshi, claimed that in his tweets, Gokhale had only made a fair comment and that Puri was not named in the posts.

"I asked questions. I did not accuse anyone of corruption," the counsel said, adding that the decree was passed against Gokhale without Puri leading any evidence.

As the court was not inclined to stay the order portion relating to publishing the apology, Sibal submitted that the court may stay the damages part and Gokhale will publish the apology.

To this, Singh said he would not press for damages in the execution petition for the time being.

On May 28, the single judge had threatened Gokhale with civil detention for his "wilful" non-compliance with judicial orders by which he was directed to apologise to Puri in the defamation case.

The high court had said it appeared that Gokhale was "mocking the court and its thought process".

Individuals punished with civil detention are kept in jail, but separate from undertrials.

On July 1, 2024, the high court restrained Gokhale from publishing any more content on social media or electronic platforms against Puri and directed him to apologise to her and pay Rs 50 lakh in damages.

On April 24, the court ordered attaching a portion of the salary being received by Gokhale as a member of Parliament of Rajya Sabha.

Following the non-compliance of the 2024 judgment, Puri filed a contempt petition against Gokhale.

The coordinate bench of the high court, on May 9, directed the TMC leader to publish an apology from his X handle which he had used to put out the offending posts, and also in a prominent news daily, within two weeks.

Puri approached the high court in 2021, alleging Gokhale tarnished her goodwill and reputation by making reckless and false allegations about her financial affairs in the context of an apartment that she owned in Geneva.

In its July 1, 2024 verdict, the high court also restrained Gokhale from publishing any more content on any social media or electronic platform concerning his imputation against Puri.

Gokhale then filed an application seeking recall of the judgment, which the coordinate bench of the high court on May 2 refused and also junked his plea to condone a delay of over 180 days in seeking the relief.