The Delhi High Court on Thursday (August 29) dismissed Congress MP Shashi Tharoor’s plea challenging the defamation case filed by a BJP leader over his alleged “scorpion on Shivling” remark aimed at Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Justice Anoop Kumar Mendiratta overturned the interim stay on the proceedings and instructed the parties to appear before the trial court on September 10, Bar and Bench reported.
“No grounds are made for quashing the proceedings at this stage,” the Court said.
The complaint was lodged under Sections 499 (defamation) and 500 (punishment for defamation) of the Indian Penal Code, 1860.
The High Court, which had previously stayed the criminal proceedings against Tharoor in the defamation case on October 16, 2020, has now lifted the interim order. The court has directed the parties to appear before the trial court on September 10.
Tharoor requested that the High Court overturn the trial court’s April 27, 2019, order, which had summoned him as an accused in the criminal defamation case filed by BJP leader Rajiv Babbar. He also sought to have the November 2, 2018, complaint dismissed.
Babbar’s complaint, filed against Tharoor in the trial court, alleged that the Congress leader’s statement had offended his religious sentiments. Tharoor was granted bail in the case in June 2019 by the trial court.