The Delhi High Court is set to pass orders on Thursday in a defamation suit filed by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and Senior Advocate Gaurav Bhatia, who seeks the removal of social media content related to an incident where he was allegedly seen on a TV news show without wearing pants.
The matter was heard on Tuesday by a single-judge bench of Justice Amit Bansal.
The case stems from Mr. Bhatia’s appearance on a News 18 channel program earlier this month. During the broadcast, a camera angle allegedly showed him wearing a traditional kurta without any accompanying pants or pyjamas. Advocate Raghav Awasthi, representing Mr. Bhatia, clarified before the court that his client was wearing shorts at the time and that the cameraman had mistakenly shown the lower half of his body.
Mr. Awasthi argued that subsequent posts and comments on social media platforms about the incident are defamatory, violate Mr. Bhatia’s right to privacy, and contain objectionable content that must be taken down.
The defamation suit specifically targets posts made by the Samajwadi Party’s media cell, news outlet Newslaundry, Aam Aadmi Party leader Saurabh Bharadwaj, Congress leader Ragini Nayak, and journalist Abhisar Sharma, among others.
After hearing the initial arguments, the Court stated it would review the material presented before making a decision. Justice Bansal clarified the Court’s preliminary view, indicating that while it would consider granting an injunction against defamatory material that specifically refers to Mr. Bhatia’s private parts, it would not restrict content that is satirical or sarcastic in nature concerning the incident.
The Court has scheduled the matter for Thursday to pass its final orders.
