A day after junior Union Minister MJ Akbar threatened legal action against the "wild" allegations of sexual misconduct against him since the #MeToo movement unfolded in India, he on Monday approached a Delhi court and filed a private criminal defamation case against journalist Priya Ramani. She was the first woman who had named him for sexual harassment over 20 years ago, following which the floodgates opened and 10 other accusations surfaced.
In the petition, filed through legal firm Karanjawala and Co, Akbar claimed that Ramani's allegations in the print and electronic media have defamed his reputation, blaming her for mental agony faced by him, his family and friends. Incidentally, though the 'vakalatnama' names 97 lawyers, who have been authorised by Akbar to represent him, his team later clarified that not all will be representing him in the case.
In his 13-page suit, Akbar, currently the Minister of State for External Affairs, has accused the journalist of acting with "vested interest" and with an "underlying agenda" to malign his reputation since the incidents in question date back to over 20 years. Filing the complaints under sections 499 and 500 of the Indian Penal Code (punishable with up to two years jail term), he has also put forth that in her articles and tweets, Ramani has admitted that Akbar didn't 'do' anything, while making out a case that the defamatory articles were a "figment of imagination" of the author in question. "The accused (Ramani) has resorted to a series of maliciously fabricated allegations, which she is diabolically and viciously spreading using media. It is also apparent that the false narrative against the complainant is being circulated in a motivated manner and for the fulfilment of an agenda," the complaint stated.
Responding to the suit, Ramani has stated, "I am deeply disappointed that a Union minister should dismiss the detailed allegations of several women as a political conspiracy," adding, "By instituting a case of criminal defamation against me, Akbar has made his stand clear: rather than engage with the serious allegations that many women have made against him, he seeks to silence them through intimidation and harassment."
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