Wife of BJP's Kirit Somaiya files ₹100 crore defamation suit against Sanjay Raut before Bombay High Court

Medha Somaiya, wife of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Kirit Somaiya has filed a civil defamation suit in Bombay High Court against Shiv Sena leader and Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Raut seeking ₹100 crores damages for printing an allegedly defamatory article in Marathi newspaper ‘Saamna’..Raut is the Editor-in-Chief of Saamna. The dispute arose when Somaiya came across the allegedly defamatory article accusing that she was involved in a ₹100 crore toilet scam and a report to that effect has been tendered by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Commissioner Iqbal Chahal to the Maharashtra government. The scam was that Somaiya had built unauthorised toilets by cutting mangroves without permission from the concerned environmental department.The plaint stated that this defamatory article was picked up by other print and electronic media.“The impression sought to be created by these defendants (Raut) in the mind of the public at large that the plaintiff has committed toilet scam of ₹100 crore. …these defendants have denigrated, tarnished image of the plaintiff in the eyes of the general public, etc. …such imputation which by itself harms her reputation is per-se defamatory and actionable,” the plaint said. As per the suit, the article imputed that:Somaiya has committed a scam of huge amount;That she has siphoned public money;That she is swindling monies under the garb of constructing toilets; andHer NGO ‘Yuva Pratisthan’ is fake and fradulent..Somaiya issued a letter to Raut through her advocate calling upon him to tender unconditional apology and refrain from making any baseless allegations.She also addressed a letter to the Senior Inspector of Police, Mulund to register a first information report (FIR) against Raut for making defamatory statements.When no FIR was registered, Somaiya filed a criminal defamation complaint before the Metropolitan Magistrate at Mazgaon, Mumbai seeking initiation of criminal proceedings against Raut.She then approached the Bombay High Court separately by way of civil suit for damages. The story published in public on the purported defamatory comments and statements has been concocted only to indulge in sensationalism, without any regard for truth and with a view to tarnish the image and to make wrongful gains, Somaiya emphasized in the plea filed through law firm Solicis Lex.In light of this, she sought the following reliefs from the High Court:to order Raut to deposit a sum of ₹100 crores in the Chief Minister relief fund or any other fund as the Court deems fit;to order Raut to publish a complete unqualified apology to Somaiya and retract the published article, ensuring the same are prominently displayed on the front page of the newspaper;order permanent injunction against Raut from making or republishing article/s in any manner defamatory against the plaintiff.