Delhi HC tells Arnab Goswami: Reply to Tharoor’s petition

New Delhi: The Delhi high court on Thursday asked Cong MP Shashi Tharoor and journalist Arnab Goswami, against whom a defamation suit has been filed by the Congress MP, to file affidavits admitting or denying the documents filed by each other in the lawsuit.

HC Joint Registrar Rakesh Pandit directed Mr Tharoor to file the affidavit in 10 days and gave two days to the TV anchor to do the same.

It has now fixed the case on February 21 for admission or denial of documents, a procedure laid down in the Civil Procedure Code (CPC) which enables rival parties to a civil suit to admit or deny papers.

The counsel for Goswami said his affidavit was ready and would be filed in two days.

The matter today came up before the Joint Registrar after the court on December 1, 2017 had sent it for admission, denial of documents by both parties.

Mr Tharoor filed a civil defamation suit against Goswami and Republic TV claiming damages and compensation of `2 crore for allegedly making defamatory remarks against him, while airing news relating to the death of his wife Sunanda Pushkar.
Through three different applications, he had also sought a direction from the court to restrain the TV channel from broadcasting any show relating to his wife’s death till the probe was completed by the Delhi police.

Justice Manmohan, ho-wever, had refused to restrain the journalist and his news channel from airing news or debates relating to the mysterious death of Mr Tharoor’s wife but had said it has to be “tempered and balanced”.

It held Mr Tharoor has a “right to silence” under the Constitution and “no person can be forced to give testimony or answer questions that may incriminate him”.