Lakshmi Puri Moves Delhi HC Against Saket Gokhale Over Defamation Ruling

Former United Nations Assistant Secretary-General Lakshmi Puri on Monday has filed a petition with the Delhi High Court against TMC leader Saket Gokhale, accusing him of failing to comply with a court order.

The order required Gokhale to issue an apology on social media and pay Rs.50 lakh in damages following a defamation suit filed by Puri.

Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora issued a notice in response to Puri’s plea, which seeks to enforce the judgment passed on July 1, 2024. The court has also directed Gokhale to submit an affidavit detailing his assets, properties, and bank accounts within the next four weeks. The next hearing is scheduled for February 5, 2025.

Senior Advocate Maninder Singh, former Additional Solicitor General, appeared on behalf of Lakshmi Puri in the matter.

In the July 2024 ruling, the Delhi High Court had ordered Saket Gokhale, an All India Trinamool Congress (AITMC) MP, to pay Rs.50 lakh in damages to Lakshmi Puri for the harm caused by defamatory statements.

Additionally, the court instructed Gokhale to publish an apology both on his Twitter account and in the Times of India. “The apology on the Twitter handle should remain for six months,” the court noted.

The case stems from defamatory tweets Gokhale posted in June 2021, accusing Puri and her husband of purchasing a property in Geneva, Switzerland, in 2006 using illicit funds. One of Gokhale’s tweets mentioned “Swiss bank accounts” and “foreign black money” and even tagged the Union Finance Minister, demanding an inquiry into the allegations by the Enforcement Directorate.

In its ruling, the court observed that Puri had suffered irreparable harm to her reputation due to Gokhale’s false statements. The court instructed Gokhale to issue an apology on his social media account and in a prominent newspaper. It also imposed a restraint on Gokhale, barring him from publishing further defamatory content against Puri. The Rs 50 lakh in damages were awarded to Puri as compensation for the reputational damage caused.

Justice Anup Jairam Bhambhani, while delivering the judgment, acknowledged that no amount of monetary compensation could fully address the damage to one’s reputation. Nevertheless, the court ruled that Gokhale must pay the damages within eight weeks.

Puri’s petition claims that Gokhale’s defamatory tweets made on June 13 and June 23, 2021, contained false and malicious allegations against her and her husband. These allegations had suggested they had acquired property in Switzerland with “black money,” leading to damage to Puri’s reputation.

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