Lawfare – Defamation, Journalists

Former Union Minister and newly appointed Congress Legislature Party (CLP) leader in the Gujarat Assembly, Dr Tushar Chaudhary, has lodged a complaint of defamation and under Atrocity Act against the editor of a news channel and an anchor of another on Friday evening.

Chaudhary has alleged that the journalists had defamed him and his father, former Chief Minister of Gujarat, the late Amarsinh Chaudhary.

The complaint against Jagdish Mehta, group editor of Rajkot-based Headlines News channel, and Gopi Ghanghar, anchor of Ahmedabad-based Nirbhay News channel, was registered in Tapi district.

The complaint was registered under Section 356 (Defamation) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and various sections of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989.

In the FIR, the Congress MLA from Khedbrahma has alleged that in a show aired on July 22 on Nirbhay News, Ghanghar made an objectionable statement against him. He said Mehta consented to the statements, which were “defamatory for him and the entire tribal community”.