HC seeks Preity Zinta's response on Ness Wadia's plea on molestation case

Mumbai: Bombay High Court on Wednesday asked actor Preity Zinta to respond to a petition filed by industrialist Ness Wadia seeking to quash a 2014 molestation case filed by her against him.

Ness Wadia's counsel told the court they wanted to "bury the hatchet".

"We (Wadia) want to bury the hatchet. The complainant is married now and has moved on with her life. The two even sit at the same table during the IPL players' auction now," Wadia's lawyer Abaad Ponda told the court.

A division bench of Justices R M Savant and Revati Mohite-Dere sought Zinta's response to the petition and posted it for hearing on August 20.

The alleged molestation happened at the Wankhede Stadium on May 30, 2014 during an IPL match.

Preity Zinta and Ness Wadia are co-owners of the Kings XI Punjab IPL team.

According to the complaint, Ness Wadia was abusing the team staff over ticket distribution when Zinta asked him to calm down He abused her and grabbed her arm, the actor had alleged.

Zinta had filed a complaint against Wadia on June 13, 2014 under sections 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty), 504 (intentional insult), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 509 (using word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman), of the Indian Penal Code

In February this year, police had filed a charge sheet in the case against Ness Wadia. Later, the industrialist approached the high court seeking to quash the case.

In his petition, he said that it was just a "misunderstanding".