Nalin Kohli, Dainik Bhaskar settle defamation suit in Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court on Thursday was informed that Senior Advocate and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) national spokesperson Nalin Kohli has reached a settlement with Dainik Bhaskar in relation to the Hindi daily's report about a sting operation [Nalin Satyakam Kohli v. DB Corp Limited & Ors]..Kohli had alleged that Dainik Bhaskar in the sting-operation video and a related report wrongly linked him to the creation and distribution of fake news targeting political figures. Besides seeking injunction and damages, Kohli had also prayed that the allegedly defamatory content be taken down..Today, Senior Advocate Aman Lekhi, appearing on behalf of Kohli, informed Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora that under the agreement, Kohli's name will be muted in the video and deleted from the article.It was submitted that Lekhi's photograph has already been removed. Further, it has also been agreed that a clarification will be put on the website and X. "It is recorded that Dainik Bhaskar has agreed to publish a corrigendum in Hindi and English on their website. It will be posting the Hindi corrigendum on their website and the ‘X’ handle. The corrigendum of both languages and its translation will be posted," the Court recorded in the order passed today.The corrigendum will be posted on the top news section for one week, as per the agreement. .The Court in the order also recorded that some journalists have already removed the post and the video from their X handles. "In view of the statement, the suit can be disposed of in terms of the settlement with respect to Dainik Bhaskar, journalists Umesh Patil and Abhishek Kumar, binding them to the undertaking," it directed.The Court restrained journalist Sachin Gupta from posting the video or article any further. .The undercover journalists associated with the news organisation had reportedly contacted companies involved in creating and disseminating fake news against political leaders. The reporters then carried out a sting operation where the representatives of these companies can be seen acknowledging their paid service of spreading fake news and political propaganda.