The Delhi High Court has sought responses from The Caravan magazine and its editor-in-chief regarding a defamation lawsuit filed by Union Minister Nitin Gadkari’s son, Nikhil Gadkari, over publications linking him and his enterprise to the bovine meat industry.
Justice Subramonium Prasad issued the notice during proceedings on an application for interim relief submitted by Nikhil Gadkari and his firm, Cian Agro Industries and Infrastructure Ltd. The high court has scheduled the matter for its next hearing on August 31.
Court Relief and Background
The legal application requests judicial directions requiring the publisher to remove existing digital materials and restraining the magazine from issuing further allegedly false and defamatory claims.
In the petition, Gadkari stated that Cian Agro Industries deals exclusively in vegetarian agro-based commodities. The suit emphasizes that neither the company nor Gadkari has ever held regulatory permits, licenses, or authorizations to engage in the slaughter, processing, trading, or exporting of beef, buffalo meat, or any bovine products.
Allegations of Political Motivation
According to the lawsuit, the publications in question began around March 3 and include a series of articles, online posts, videos, and digital content associating the plaintiffs with the bovine meat trade.
The plea asserts that Gadkari was singled out by the publishers because of his family background as the son of a senior Union minister and former national president of the Bharatiya Janata Party.
