#MeToo: Delhi court to record MJ Akbar's statement against Priya Ramani

NEW DELHI: A Delhi court will on Wednesday recdord the statement of former Union Minister MJ Akbar in connection with a defamation suit filed by him against journalist Priya Ramani who had accused him of sexual harassment. 

The court will begin pre-summoning evidence in the case today.

Akbar had sued Ramani, seeking her prosecution under Sections 499 and 500 of the IPC for defamation. On October 17, Akbar had stepped down as the Minister of State in MEA following a flurry of allegations made against him by at least 15 women, who accused him of sexual misconduct during his stint as the editor of The Asian Age. 

On Octobber 18, the court took judicial note of Akbar's criminal defamation complaint against Ramani and decided to record the statement of the former minister on October 31 in the case.  

Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Samar Vishal heard the submissions of senior advocate Geeta Luthra, representing Akbar, that the "controversial" tweets and similar social media posts of Ramani have caused irreparable loss to his reputation built over 40 years.

"Let the matter be fixed for examination of the complainant (Akbar) and his witnesses for October 31," the magistrate said.

The senior lawyer referred to the sequence of events and said that Akbar has resigned from the post of Minister of State for External Affairs due to these allegations and this showed the extent of damage caused to his reputation.

She also referred to the reputation of Akbar as a journalist and sought judicial intervention in the matter by taking cognisance of the complaint.

As per the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), the court would now record the pre-summoning evidence and statement of Akbar and other witnesses referred to in the complaint and would issue a notice to Ramani to face trial if it is satisfied that there is prima-facie substance in the complaint. 

Akbar had earlier tendered his resignation after making it clear that he had filed the case in his "personal" capacity and would fight it out in the court of law.

"Since I have decided to seek justice in a court of law in my personal capacity, I deem it appropriate to step down from office and challenge false accusations levied against me, also in a personal capacity. I have, therefore, tendered my resignation from the office of Minister of State for External Affairs. I am deeply grateful to Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi and to the External Affairs Minister Smt Sushma Swaraj for the opportunity they gave me to serve my country," Akbar said in his letter.

Akbar then filed the criminal defamation complaint against Ramani alleging she "wilfully" and "maliciously" made imputations against him with the ulterior motive of maligning his reputation and political standing.

Expressing her readiness to fight the defamation allegations, Ramani said, "Rather than engage with the serious allegations that many women have made against him, he (Akbar) seeks to silence them through intimidation and harassment."
 
Akbar's plea listed alleged defamatory imputations made by Ramani on social media and also referred to his "long and illustrious" career as a journalist while terming the allegations of Ramani as a "figment of her imagination". 

"Whilst it is apparent that the accused has resorted to a series of maliciously serious allegations which she is diabolically and viciously spreading in media, it is also apparent that false narrative against the complainant (Akbar) is being circulated in a motivated manner for the fulfilment of an agenda," it alleged.

It termed as "scandalous" the allegations made by Ramani and said the "very tone and tenor" are "ex-facie defamatory" and they have not only damaged his goodwill and reputation in his social circle but also affected Akbar's reputation in "the community, friends, family and colleagues" and caused "irreparable loss" and "tremendous distress".

It claimed that the woman journalist, while putting forward the allegations relating to incidents which allegedly occurred 20 years ago, "intentionally put forward malicious, fabricated, and salacious imputations to harm the reputation of the complainant".

"The conduct of the accused person, of not taking any action before any authority, qua the alleged incident against the complainant also clearly belies the sanctity of the article and allegations made by the accused person, which evidently goes on to prove that the said defamatory articles are only a figment of her imagination," it said.
 
Section 500 of the IPC provides for the sentence for the offence of defamation and an accused may be awarded two-year jail term or fine or both in the event of conviction.

Akbar's name had cropped up in the social media campaign #Metoo against alleged sexual harassment when he was in Nigeria.

The women who accused Akbar of sexual harassment included Ghazala Wahab, Shuma Raha, Anju Bharti and Shutapa Paul.