Former Minister for Civil Aviation and senior NCP leader Praful Patel on Thursday found himself in an embarrassing situation, as a Mumbai court imposed a fine of Rs3,000 on him for seeking yet another adjournment in a defamation case filed by him against Air India's former Executive Director Jitender Bhargava.
Bharghava, who had authored a controversial book “The Descent of Air India” after his retirement from Air India in October, 2013, had chronicled the decline of Air India under Patel, citing numerous acts of omissions and commissions when Patel was at the helm of affairs and also detailing other factors responsible for Air India's deteriorating financial condition.
Upset with the contents in Bhargava’s book, Patel had filed a defamation case against the author and the publishers, Bloomsbury.
“Though the publishers subsequently withdrew the book from the markets around January 2014, I stood my ground since everything in the book was based on documentary evidence. As many as 10 dates for hearing were fixed by the court, but on each occasion, Patel’s side sought adjournments which were granted,” Bhargava said.