The Delhi High Court has summoned Congress leader and Member of Parliament (MP) Shashi Tharoor for allegedly making false and defamatory remarks against Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Rajeev Chandrashekhar, during the 2024 general elections.
The single-judge Bench of Justice Purushaindra Kumar Kaurav passed the order on a civil defamation suit filed by Chandrashekhar seeking an order restraining Tharoor from making such defamatory statements as well as public apology and damages.
The High Court issued notice to Tharoor through all permissible modes, seeking his response by April 28, 2025.
In his defamation suit, Chandrashekhar accused Tharoor of making false and defamatory statements on various public fora in April 2024 during election campaigns, causing severe damage to his professional and personal reputation.
Chandrashekhar and Tharoor contested the 2024 Parliamentary elections from the Thiruvananthapuram constituency.
Chandrashekhar reportedly sent Tharoor a legal notice for defamation in April 2024, over the latter’s alleged remarks that there were talks of key influential figures, including parish priests, being bribed for votes.
The BJP leader moved the High Court, seeking an order to restrain Tharoor from making further defamatory remarks, a public apology, and Rs 10 crore as damages for tarnishing Chandrashekhar’s reputation.
Chandrashekhar argued that Tharoor made baseless and defamatory claims against Chandrashekhar, despite being aware that they were false.
Appearing for Chandrashekhar, Senior Advocate Vaibhav Gaggar, briefed by the team of M/S Karanjawala and Compnay, comprising Senior Partner Meghna Mishra, Principal Associate Ankit Rajgarhia and Associate Palak Sharma, contended that the allegations made by Tharoor resulted in significant damage to Chandrashekhar’s reputation and ultimately led to his defeat in the Lok Sabha elections by a narrow margin of 16,077 votes.
The narrow margin by which Tharoor won the election showed the significant impact of his defamatory and derogatory statements on the final electoral outcome, they added.
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