In a significant judicial move, the Delhi High Court on Thursday directed the attachment of Trinamool Congress MP Saket Gokhale’s salary in connection with a defamation case. The case was initiated by former diplomat Lakshmi Puri, who accused Gokhale of tarnishing her reputation through baseless allegations.
Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora mandated the salary attachment after Gokhale failed to comply with a previous court order. In July 2024, the court had ordered Gokhale to issue a public apology and pay Rs 50 lakh in damages to Puri for making unfounded accusations about her financial dealings related to property in Geneva. Despite the court’s directive, Gokhale neither deposited the required sum nor provided a satisfactory explanation for his non-compliance.
The court’s recent order enforces the attachment of Gokhale’s monthly salary of Rs 1.90 lakh under Section 60 of the Code of Civil Procedure. This section allows for the attachment of a judgment-debtor’s salary to facilitate the execution of a decree, specifically limiting the attachment to the first one thousand rupees and two-thirds of the remaining amount. The attachment will persist until the full amount of Rs 50 lakh is deposited with the court.
This legal development comes even as Gokhale seeks a “recall” of the judgment against him, with his plea currently pending before another bench. However, Justice Arora noted that there is no stay on the execution of the decree from the ongoing proceedings, indicating that the salary attachment can proceed unabated.
Lakshmi Puri had approached the high court in 2021, claiming that Gokhale had significantly damaged her goodwill by recklessly circulating false statements about her. The court had previously restrained Gokhale from further disseminating any allegations against Puri on social media or any electronic platforms.
