New Delhi: The Supreme Court will on September 12 hear a plea filed by actor and BJP MP Kangana Ranaut, challenging the Punjab and Haryana High Court’s refusal to quash a defamation case against her. The case stems from her alleged defamatory remarks during the 2020–21 farmers’ protest. A bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta is scheduled to take up the matter.
The case was filed by Mahinder Kaur (73), a resident of Punjab’s Bathinda district, who participated in the protests. In her complaint, Kaur alleged that Ranaut wrongly identified her as Bilkis Bano, the elderly protestor from Shaheen Bagh, in a retweet. She claimed the remarks were “false and defamatory,” damaging her dignity and reputation.
In its August 1 order, the High Court dismissed Ranaut’s plea, holding that there were specific allegations against the petitioner and that the Bathinda magistrate had prima facie found sufficient grounds to proceed under Section 499 of the IPC (now repealed). The High Court said the complaint could not be dismissed as mala fide, since it was aimed at protecting the complainant’s reputation.
Ranaut had earlier filed a petition under Section 482 CrPC seeking to quash both the defamation complaint and the summoning order of February 22, 2022 issued by the Bathinda trial court. Her counsel argued that the magistrate acted improperly by summoning her without receiving a confirmation report from Twitter Communications India Private Limited (TCIPL). However, Justice Dahiya observed that TCIPL was not in control of Twitter and its non-response could not negate the magistrate’s jurisdiction under Section 202 CrPC.
Kaur, who actively took part in sit-ins and demonstrations during the farmers’ agitation, maintained that she had no connection to Bilkis Bano of Shaheen Bagh, contrary to Ranaut’s social media post. She alleged that the actor’s comments hurt her pride and honour, amounting to defamation.
The matter will now be considered by the Supreme Court, which will decide on the maintainability of the complaint and whether the trial proceedings against Ranaut should continue.
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