The Delhi High Court has issued a notice to the Lieutenant Governor’s Office in response to a petition filed by Medha Patkar in the criminal defamation case.
The court has asked for a reply within four weeks. Justice Shailendra Kaur’s bench will hear the petition in May.
Patkar approached the High Court after the Saket Court refused to allow her to present a new witness. She has sought permission to submit additional witnesses in her defense.
The Saket Court had earlier rejected her request, stating that the demand was an attempt to delay the hearing.
The Saket Court sentenced Patkar to five months’ imprisonment in May 2024.
However, the Sessions Court later suspended the sentence.
The first-class judicial magistrate ruled that Patkar’s plea lacked merit as the case has been pending for 24 years, and all witnesses’ statements have already been recorded.
The court noted that Patkar had made a similar request on August 18, 2023, but failed to present the witness.
The magistrate questioned why she had not mentioned this witness in the past 24 years. The court emphasized that allowing new witnesses at this stage would set a wrong precedent and cause unnecessary delays.
Saxena’s lawyer argued that the case had been postponed 94 times due to Patkar. He had filed a criminal defamation case against her 23 years ago, when he was leading an NGO in Gujarat.
On July 1, 2024, the magistrate’s court sentenced Patkar to five months of simple imprisonment and imposed a fine of ₹10 lakh.
The Sessions Court later suspended the sentence and asked Saxena to submit a reply.
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