Delhi HC Orders Activist Saket Gokhale To Delete Tweets Against Lakshmi & Hardeep Singh Puri In 24 Hours

The order was given by Justice C Hari Shankar, who also said that if Gokhale fails to comply within 24 hours, Twitter can take down the tweets. 

Lakshmi Puri (left) & Saket Gokhale (right) Source: Twitter

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Tuesday directed activist Saket Gokhale to delete his defamatory tweets against Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri's wife Lakshmi Murdeshwar Puri. The Court further restrained Gokhale from posting "scandalous" tweets against Lakshmi or her husband.

The order was given by Justice C Hari Shankar, who also said that if Gokhale fails to comply within 24 hours, Twitter can take down the tweets. 

Gokhale's tweets from June 13th and 26th alleged that former Assistant Secretary-General at the United Nations Lakshmi Purihad purchased a certain property in Switzerland disproportionate to her income and also made references to her spouse, Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri.

The order was passed in the defamation suit filed by Puri seeking Rs 5 crore damages from Gokhale and a direction that he deletes the tweets.

The court also issued summons to Gokhale on the main suit and directed him to file his written statement within four weeks and listed the case before the Joint Registrar on September 10. It also said the observations made in the order are prima facie and made to decide the application for the interim relief.

Lawsuit By Puri

Puri filed the suit through Karanjawala and Company claiming that the tweets were defamatory, malicious, and based on false information. She alleged, Gokhale made slanderous and libelous statements/ imputations against her and her family. 

The notice sent to Gokhale stated that despite Puri's response Gokhale "continued to send out tweets in order to create a false narrative despite clear clarifications offered on the platform."

It further stated that Gokhale falsely claimed that Puri's income could have only been Rs 10-12 lakh as she was on deputation from the Government of India to UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD).

Defence argues for Gokhale

Appearing for Gokhale, Sarim Naved on the last date of hearing said that as a citizen, his client has the right to go into the assets of public functionaries. To which the court asked whether the defendant (Gokhale) approached the plaintiff (Puri) to verify the facts. Naved respondent that he didn't need to.

"So any Tom, Dick, and Harry can write anything vilifying against anyone on the internet?" the Court asked according to Bar & Bench. 

Senior Advocate Maninder Singh who was appearing for Puri had contended that the tweets were defamatory, malicious, and based on false information and that Gokhale was nobody to put questions to her.

"I will demonstrate how mala fide this gentleman is. Such uncontrolled people. I have worked for 28 years in the service. During my leave, I worked with United Nations," Singh submitted according to Bar & Bench.

Singh further submitted that Puri's elder daughter helped with the money to buy the flat in Switzerland and that she had a mortgage of 10 lakh Swiss francs. 

"My elder daughter who is a banker in New York gave me 6 lakh Swiss francs and I had a mortgage of 10 lakh Swiss francs. I have put these documents before Court. I was on leave, not on deputation as alleged by Gokhale. He knows everything. It is only an edifice created to blackmail me," Bar & Bench quoted Singh.

He had said Puri does not hold any public office for these details to be put in the public domain and if he was putting her name in public, he should have the minimum civility to ask her before he publishes this which was deliberately ignored.

Naved argued that as a citizen, he has the right to go into the assets of public functionaries. He had also said Puri's husband is a Union minister and that assets of such persons along with spouse should be in the public domain but in this case, the money received from their daughter is not in the public domain.