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The Rouse Avenue court has scheduled a pre-cognizance hearing for a defamation complaint filed by former Congress MP Sandeep Dikshit against Delhi Chief Minister Atishi and AAP MP Sanjay Singh.
The next hearing of the matter is set for February 6.
Dikshit, who is contesting the Delhi Assembly elections against AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal from the New Delhi constituency, alleges that defamatory statements were made against him by Atishi and Singh during a press conference held on December 26, 2024.
His counsel, Advocate Sarim Naved, claims that the accused falsely accused Dikshit and the Indian National Congress (INC) of colluding with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to defeat AAP, without presenting any substantial evidence.
Atishi and Singh’s counsel, Advocate Rajat Bhardwaj, informed the court that they had received a copy of the complaint but some pages were illegible. The court instructed Dikshit’s counsel to provide legible copies of the documents.
Dikshit’s counsel also offered a potential resolution, stating that if the accused retracted their allegations, they could consider not pursuing the case.
On January 16, the court issued notices to Atishi and Singh, directing them to respond before the court proceeds with taking cognizance of the complaint. The case is being considered under Sections 223 and 222(1) of the BNS Act, 2023, which pertain to summoning, trial, and punishment for defamation.
The defamation complaint centers on a press conference held by Atishi and Singh, during which they allegedly claimed that Dikshit had accepted “crores of rupees” from the BJP and was involved in a conspiracy to defeat AAP in the Delhi elections. Dikshit contends that these accusations were baseless and damaging to his reputation.
In addition, Atishi reportedly shared a post on X (formerly Twitter) at 1:08 pm on December 26, 2024, with the caption “BJP is helping Congress in the Delhi election.” The tweet, which has garnered over 30,000 views, along with the widespread media coverage of the allegations, has led to significant public attention.
The legal notice sent to the accused on January 2, 2025, has not resulted in the removal of the defamatory tweet, which remains online. Dikshit’s complaint asserts that the defamatory statements have caused harm to his reputation, warranting legal action under the defamation laws.
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