Zee Media files criminal case against The Wire

Zee Media Corporation Limited (ZMCL) moved court on February 7, 2019, for defamatory allegations by The Wire. A criminal case has been filed through advocate Vijay Aggarwal against the promoters of the online news portal, The Wire, the hearing of which is scheduled towards March end this year.

In a statement issued on Sunday (February 10, 2019), ZMCL said, the main allegation in the case is that defamatory articles dated January 24, 2019, were published, wherein false and defamatory allegations against Zee Media Corporation Ltd (complainant) have been levelled.

ZMCL added that the next date of hearing is scheduled on March 28, 2019.

The complaint alleged that The Wire articles "falsely" "linked the complainant company with the allegations of black money and alleged suspect demonetisation deposits and have conveyed to the world at large that the complainant company is being investigated by the SFIO (Serious Fraud Investigation Office)."

ZMCL said that the articles were incorrect, having no factual base and that they were "motivated and malicious, twisting the facts and the truth".

The legal suit has been filed under section 499, 500, 34 and 109 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) against Foundation for Independent Journalism (running the brand 'The Wire'), Gulam Shaik Budan, Anuj Srivas, Mangalam Kesavan Venu, Siddharth Vardarajan and Sidharth Roshanlal Bhatia in the court of Sumit Anand, Ld. MM, Patiala House Court, Delhi.