On Monday, the Delhi High Court ruled against quashing the defamation proceedings against Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal concerning his comments about alleged deletions from electoral rolls. This decision marks a significant moment in the ongoing legal battle initiated by BJP Delhi leader Rajeev Babbar.
Rajeev Babbar’s complaint centers around accusations made by Kejriwal and other leaders from the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), who claimed that the BJP was behind the removal of approximately 30 lakh names from Delhi’s electoral rolls, predominantly affecting voters from the Baniya, Muslim, and other communities. These statements, according to Babbar, were defamatory and damaged the BJP’s reputation by implying wrongful conduct in the electoral processes.
The case has seen several developments since its inception, including a temporary stay on proceedings by the Delhi High Court in February 2020. AAP leaders had appealed to the court seeking dismissal of the trial court’s order from March 15, 2019, and the sessions court’s order dated January 28, 2020, which are both now upheld by the latest High Court ruling.
Adding to the political legal battles, AAP leader Atishi Marlena was also involved in a separate defamation case filed by BJP leader Praveen Shankar Kapoor over allegations of ‘poaching’ AAP legislators, for which she was granted bail in July by Delhi’s Rouse Avenue court.
Kejriwal had previously argued that the defamation complaint should be deemed non-maintainable, contending it was vague and lacked clarity on who the “person aggrieved” by the alleged defamation was. However, the trial court had observed that the accusations made by Kejriwal and other AAP leaders were prima facie defamatory, directly referring to the BJP.
Rajeev Babbar maintains that any issues with the voters’ list fall under the jurisdiction of the Election Commission, not the BJP, suggesting that the allegations by AAP were unfounded and politically motivated.
