The Supreme Court dismissed Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia’s plea seeking quashing of defamation proceedings against him by Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma, saying “If you reduce public debate to this level, you have to face the consequences.”
Sisodia has now withdrawn the plea, after the apex court’s disinclination to continue it. The court also said that the petitioner should have earlier apologised unconditionally.
The matter came up for hearing on Monday before a bench comprising Justices S K Kaul and A S Oka.
Appearing for Sisodia, senior advocate A M Singhvi said one cannot use the authority to “browbeat” others and that the petitioner had never said any money was taken, The Indian Express reported.
The Assam chief minister had filed a criminal defamation case against the AAP leader for making “baseless” corruption allegations against him in connection with the supply of PPE kits at “higher than market rates” to the National Health Mission (NHM) authorities during the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic. Sisodia had alleged that as Assam’s health minister, Sarma had favoured the firm of his wife, Riniki Bhuyan Sarma, which he has denied.
The court observed that instead of realising what the country was going through during the pandemic, the petitioner was making allegations.
Sisodia, referring to media reports, had told reporters that while the Assam government procured PPE kits for Rs 600 each from other companies, Sarma gave urgent supply orders to the firms of his wife and son’s business partners for Rs 990 apiece.
