A Delhi Court has ordered to summon the court clerk of the record room of Delhi High Court to bring original case file of the petition filed by Medha Patkar for quashing of the defamation case filed by VK Saxena, presently the chairman of Khadi and Village Industries Commission. The original case file will help settle the dispute about the existence of the so called “defamatory’ press release issued by Patkar , something she has persistently denied in the court.
Saxena has filed two defamation cases against Patkar which are pending in the court of Metropolitan Magistrate, Saket, New Delhi. The one defamation case was related to a press note issued by Patkar on 24.11.2000, in which she claimed that Saxena visited Malegaon, praised Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA), and donated a cheque of `40,000 to Lok Samiti, a support group of NBA. The news was published by a news portal rediff.com.
Saxena denied that he ever visited Malegaon or made any such donation to the NBA and said that the press note was full of false allegations and was defamatory. He subsequently issued a legal notice to Patkar. After receiving no response from the NBA leader , Saxena filed a defamation case in January 2001.
During the last 20 years on various occasions, Patkar denied that she ever issued any such press note and even claimed that it was fabricated by Saxena himself.
Interestingly, Patkar filed a criminal miscellaneous application No 6026 on 26.11.2018, U/S 482 of CrPC in the High Court of Delhi for quashing the proceedings in another defamation case filed by Saxena against her. An advance copy of the petition was also sent to Saxena by her advocate. In the said criminal petition, Patkar in the list of “dates and events”, mentioned that on 24.11.2000, a press note was released by her which was subsequently published in the news portal rediff.com.
Incidentally, this was precisely the case made out by Saxena. Patkar later withdrew the petition.
Saxena on February 17, 2020 filed an application in the MM Court along with certified copies of the criminal miscellaneous application no. 6026 of 2018 filed by Patkar in the Delhi High Court with the request for calling upon additional witness in the case, i.e. the concerned court clerk of the Delhi High Court with original case file of the above case where she has admitted to have issued the press note in question. Counsel for Saxena pleaded that judicial admission cannot be withdrawn.
Metropolitan Magistrate Animesh Kumar after hearing both the sides said, “it is a case of the complainant (VK Saxena) that on 26.11.2018, accused (Medha Patkar) filed a petition bearing number Crl MC 6026 of 2018 before the Hon’ble Delhi High Court U/S 482 CrPC for quashing the proceedings of CC No. 2866/1/03 pending before this court. Ld Counsel for the complainant submits that the accused has made certain judicial admissions under oath in the said petition filed before the DHC where she has categorically admitted that she made averments against the complainant.”
The Magistrate further said that relevant record related to Crl MC No. 6026 of 2018 titled “Medha Patkar Vs State of Delhi & Others” should be summoned in the present case.
“Hence, let summon be issued to the concerned clerk of the record room of Hon’ble Delhi High Court to bring the original case file on 19.03.2021,” he ordered.