The Bombay High Court has set aside a magistrate court’s order issuing notice to HDFC Bank’s Managing Director and CEO, Sashidhar Jagdishan, in connection with a defamation complaint filed by the trustee of the Lilavati Kirtilal Mehta Medical Trust.
A single-judge bench of Justice S M Modak, in an order dated August 5 (released on Monday), observed that the Girgaon judicial magistrate had acted prematurely in issuing notice to the proposed accused without first recording verification of the complainant and witnesses.
The Complaint and Lower Court Order
The defamation complaint was filed by Prashant Mehta, permanent trustee of the Lilavati Kirtilal Mehta Medical Trust, who had sought registration of an offence against Jagdishan under the provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.
In June this year, the magistrate issued notice to Jagdishan. Challenging the move, Jagdishan approached the High Court.
High Court’s Reasoning
Justice Modak underscored that the process prescribed by law mandates verification of the complainant and witnesses before proceeding to hear the accused.
“There is a purpose of recording the verification. It gives an opportunity to the magistrate to ascertain whether to proceed further or not,” the High Court said, stressing that without this step, the matter cannot advance to the stage of hearing the accused.
Accordingly, the High Court quashed and set aside the magistrate’s order but clarified that the magistrate was at liberty to continue with the complaint in accordance with law. The judge directed that verification of the complainant and witnesses, if any, must be carried out before deciding on cognizance and subsequent proceedings.
