NEW DELHI, Oct. 15 -- A Delhi court has issued fresh summons to YouTuber Dhruv Rathee in an eight-year-old criminal defamation case linked to a video about the BJP's IT cell, after the complainant informed the court that Rathee, who ordinarily resides abroad, was currently in India to participate in protests in the national capital.
Judicial Magistrate First Class Rahul Jain of the Saket court passed the order on October 12 while hearing an application filed by Vikas Sankrityayan, also known as Vikas Pandey, seeking an early hearing and fresh summons against the YouTuber. The court directed that summons be issued at Rathee's address in Gurugram, Haryana, and scheduled the next hearing for October 17. The case dates back to 2018 and concerns a video titled BJP IT Cell Part 2, in which Rathee allegedly made defamatory statements about Pandey, who is associated with the BJP's IT cell and founded the social media page I Support Narendra Modi.
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Advocate Samaksh Sharma, appearing for the complainant, told the court that attempts to serve summons on Rathee had remained unsuccessful for several years because he ordinarily resided in Austria.
The lawyer submitted that Rathee had recently returned to India in connection with the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) protests in Delhi and was staying in Gurugram.
He argued that fresh summons should be issued immediately to ensure that the pending proceedings could move forward.
The court examined the case records and observed that the complainant had been attempting to secure service of summons since July 23, 2019, when Rathee was first summoned.
Taking note of the submissions, the magistrate directed the issuance of fresh summons at the address provided by the complainant.
The court also permitted dasti summons, allowing the complainant to facilitate personal service rather than relying solely on the ordinary court process.
The complainant was directed to deposit the necessary process fee within two days.
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The criminal defamation complaint arose from a video uploaded by Rathee in May 2018 concerning the functioning of the BJP's information technology cell.
Pandey alleged that the video contained false and defamatory accusations against him.
According to the complaint, Rathee had alleged that Pandey was associated with efforts to spread misinformation and had offered Rs 50 lakh to a person named Mahavir Prasad to withdraw allegations concerning the BJP IT cell.
Pandey disputed the claims and initiated criminal defamation proceedings.
The complaint also involved former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who had shared Rathee's video on social media.
Kejriwal subsequently approached the Supreme Court, which stayed the defamation proceedings against him in February 2024.
The proceedings involving Rathee, however, have remained pending.
The allegations made in the original complaint have not been established through a final judicial determination.
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The latest development comes amid Rathee's visit to India in connection with protests against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and the Election Commission's handling of electoral-roll revisions.
Rathee had publicly expressed support for the CJP-led protest scheduled at Jantar Mantar on October 10.
He was detained at his Gurugram residence ahead of the demonstration, an incident that subsequently triggered controversy over police action against protesters.
Following his release, Rathee alleged that he had been taken away without proper legal procedures and described the incident as a kidnapping.
The authorities' action and Rathee's allegations have been the subject of separate public debate.
The complainant in the defamation case cited Rathee's presence in India as grounds for advancing the hearing, which had previously been scheduled for November 20.
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The Saket court's order concerns the service of summons and the continuation of proceedings in the pending criminal defamation complaint.
It does not constitute a finding of guilt against Rathee.
The court will take up the matter again on October 17, when the status of the summons and further proceedings are expected to be considered.
The case has returned to attention nearly eight years after the complaint was filed, with Rathee's presence in India providing the complainant an opportunity to seek renewed action in the long-pending proceedings.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.