New Delhi, 04 February (H.S.): Saket Court in Delhi issued summons to Congress leaders Ragini Nayak, Pawan Khera, and Jairam Ramesh on Wednesday , while hearing a criminal defamation complaint filed by journalist Rajat Sharma.

Judicial Magistrate First Class Devanshi Janmeja ordered the three Congress leaders to appear in court on July 27.The case stems from an incident during a news channel show on June 4, 2024, when Congress leader Ragini Nayak allegedly accused Rajat Sharma on her Twitter handle of hurling abuses at her.

These allegations regarding the June 4, 2024, show—aired during the Lok Sabha election vote counting—were posted by Ragini Nayak on her X handle on June 10, 2024, claiming that Rajat Sharma had abused her.

Rajat Sharma's petition states that six days after the news channel show, Ragini Nayak deliberately tweeted to defame him. That tweet was shared by the Congress leaders on their Twitter handles, as they sought to tarnish Sharma's reputation. Sharma has described these allegations as defamatory.

The petition further asserts that Rajat Sharma has been a journalist for over 40 years, renowned for his civilized conduct, and has never raised his voice at anyone on television screens. It claims Ragini Nayak only learned of the alleged abuse six days later, likely from a follower, and then intentionally attached a abusive video clip to her tweet to defame Sharma.

Subsequently , India TV publicly tagged Ragini Nayak and Congress leaders Jairam Ramesh and Pawan Khera, declaring their allegations false and baseless, categorizing them as defamatory and fake news.

---------------

Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar