The Crossbill News Desk
The Supreme Court on Monday (August 11) upheld the conviction of activist Medha Patkar in a 25-year-old defamation case filed by the current Delhi Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena, but struck down the monetary penalty imposed on her.
The case dates back to 2000, when Saxena, then president of the National Council of Civil Liberties (NCCL) — a registered society supporting the Sardar Sarovar Dam project in Gujarat — accused Patkar of making defamatory statements in response to an NCCL advertisement criticising the Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA).
Patkar and the NBA had opposed the dam project on environmental and human rights grounds.
A bench of Justices M M Sundresh and N K Singh affirmed the finding of guilt but set aside the Rs 1 lakh compensation awarded to Saxena.
In July 2024, a trial court had convicted Patkar, sentencing her to five months’ simple imprisonment and directing her to pay the compensation, with an additional three months’ imprisonment in case of default. The Additional Sessions Judge later upheld the conviction but released her on probation with conditions.
The Delhi High Court, in July this year, declined to interfere with the conviction but modified the probation terms, allowing her to appear before the trial court every three months either in person, via video conferencing, or through a lawyer.
Senior advocate Maninder Singh, representing Saxena, pressed for at least a token penalty, while senior advocate Sanjay Parikh, appearing for Patkar, argued that key witnesses had been disbelieved by the lower courts and that crucial email evidence was inadmissible under Section 65B of the Indian Evidence Act.
The dispute arose after NCCL, on November 10, 2000, published an advertisement in The Indian Express titled “True face of Ms. Medha Patkar and her Narmada Bachao Andolan”.
Patkar issued a press note in response, which Saxena claimed was defamatory and damaging to his reputation, especially among Gujarati-speaking supporters of the Sardar Sarovar Project.
The press note was later published in Gujarati on the Rediff.com website, allegedly causing further harm to Saxena’s image.
The case dates back to 2000, when Saxena, then president of the National Council of Civil Liberties (NCCL) — a registered society supporting the Sardar Sarovar Dam project in Gujarat — accused Patkar of making defamatory statements in response to an NCCL advertisement criticising the Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA).
Patkar and the NBA had opposed the dam project on environmental and human rights grounds.
A bench of Justices M M Sundresh and N K Singh affirmed the finding of guilt but set aside the Rs 1 lakh compensation awarded to Saxena.
In July 2024, a trial court had convicted Patkar, sentencing her to five months’ simple imprisonment and directing her to pay the compensation, with an additional three months’ imprisonment in case of default. The Additional Sessions Judge later upheld the conviction but released her on probation with conditions.
The Delhi High Court, in July this year, declined to interfere with the conviction but modified the probation terms, allowing her to appear before the trial court every three months either in person, via video conferencing, or through a lawyer.
Senior advocate Maninder Singh, representing Saxena, pressed for at least a token penalty, while senior advocate Sanjay Parikh, appearing for Patkar, argued that key witnesses had been disbelieved by the lower courts and that crucial email evidence was inadmissible under Section 65B of the Indian Evidence Act.
The dispute arose after NCCL, on November 10, 2000, published an advertisement in The Indian Express titled “True face of Ms. Medha Patkar and her Narmada Bachao Andolan”.
Patkar issued a press note in response, which Saxena claimed was defamatory and damaging to his reputation, especially among Gujarati-speaking supporters of the Sardar Sarovar Project.
The press note was later published in Gujarati on the Rediff.com website, allegedly causing further harm to Saxena’s image.
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