New Delhi, 06 November (H.S.): The Sessions Court at Delhi’s Rouse Avenue Courts has issued a notice to Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Saurabh Bharadwaj while hearing a petition filed by Delhi Cabinet Minister Parvesh Verma challenging the Magistrate Court’s decision to dismiss his criminal defamation complaint against Bharadwaj. The matter has been listed for the next hearing on November 28.

The Magistrate Court had dismissed Verma’s complaint on October 10. Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Neha Mittal had passed the order rejecting the complaint.

Verma alleged that Bharadwaj had made false accusations against him with the intention of tarnishing his and his family’s reputation. He claimed that Bharadwaj had falsely alleged that he misused his position as a minister to appoint an alleged associate as a trustee of a private school trust valued at approximately Rs. 500 crore.

In his criminal defamation petition, Verma stated that Bharadwaj had published posts on May 15 and 16 with the intention of maligning his reputation. According to the petition, Bharadwaj had allegedly accused him of misusing his ministerial position to secure the appointment of an alleged associate as a trustee of the private school trust, which was reportedly worth around Rs. 500 crore.

The petition further alleged that Bharadwaj had claimed Verma used his influence to favour employees of the school who were accused in a case registered under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. Verma maintained that these social media posts were deliberately intended to damage his reputation in the eyes of the public.

In connection with the same matter, Verma had also filed a civil defamation suit against Bharadwaj in the Delhi High Court. Through the civil suit, Verma has sought damages of Rs. 5 crore from the AAP leader.

Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar