Delhi High Court Court quashes defamation case against journo Nilanjana Bhowmick for article on activist Ravi Nair

The Delhi High Court recently quashed criminal defamation proceedings against journalist Nilanjana Bhowmick. ruling that her 2010 article for TIME magazine on the financial scrutiny of Indian NGOs did not contain defamatory statements against activist Ravi Nair and his non-profit South Asian Human Rights Documentation Centre. .The Court ruled that her 2010 article for TIME magazine on the financial scrutiny of Indian NGOs did not contain defamatory statements against activist Ravi Nair and his non-profit South Asian Human Rights Documentation Centre. Bhowmick had published an article titled ‘Accountability of India’s Nonprofits under Scrutiny’. Nair sued her for defamation in 2014, alleging that she implied he and his organisation were involved in money laundering. .In an order passed on November 17, Justice Neena Bansal Krishna ruled that the article was factually correct and it is evident that a complaint was registered against Nair’s NGO. “There is no denial by the Petitioner that on the indication of European Anti-Fraud Agency, the Indian Federal Agency had looked into these aspects of the NGO of the complainant. Whatever discomfort such allegation or investigation may have caused to the Respondent, it cannot be termed as defamatory as no part of the reporting was incorrect. To say that by innuendoes and insinuations, there were some acts being attributed to the complainant is an oversensitive, attitude of the complainant, and would not be sufficient to constitute defamation,” the Court observed. It said that the manner in which a journalist or writer presents the facts is their skill of writing, but if the reported matter is factually correct, it cannot be termed as an act of defamation. Justice Krishna added that mere insinuations and innuendoes in an article cannot be sufficient to make a case of defamation. “Here also, the complainant is only trying to build a case of defamation by asserting that there were certain insinuations and innuendos in the Article, but that in itself, cannot be held to be sufficient to make it a case of defamation. In the light of the aforesaid discussions, it cannot be said that the two lines written against the NGO of the Complainant or for the complainant were per se defamatory when in fact it only stated a fact which may be non-palatable to the complainant,” the judge said. .Meanwhile, the Court also held Nair’s defamation case was time-barred under Section 468 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) since it was filed in 2014 though the article was published in 2010. It rejected Nair’s argument that continued online availability of the article constituted “continuous publication,” holding instead that the limitation period begins from the date of first publication.“Accordingly, it is held that no offence of defamation is disclosed against the Petitioner, Nilanjana Bhowmick. Also the Complaint is barred by limitation. Nilanjana Bhowmick is hereby discharged and the proceedings in Criminal Complaint No. 33305/2016 against the Petitioner, is quashed,” the Court concluded. .Advocate Ashwin Vaish appeared for journalist Nilanjana Bhowmick. Advocate R Gopal represented Ravi Nair. .[Read Judgment].Follow Bar and Bench channel on WhatsAppDownload the Bar and Bench Mobile app for instant access to the latest legal news.