LI Network
Published on: December 08, 2023 at 12:07 IST
The Delhi High Court has given Congress MP Shashi Tharoor the last chance to file submissions in his plea challenging defamation proceedings against him over the “scorpion on Shivling” remark targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The court, headed by Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma, adjourned the matter until March 15, 2024, granting Tharoor’s counsel’s request and instructing the submission of written arguments.
The court clarified that if the matter isn’t argued on the next hearing, the petition will be decided based on written submissions.
Tharoor had sought the setting aside of the trial court’s order summoning him as an accused in the criminal defamation complaint filed by BJP leader Rajiv Babbar.
The high court had stayed the criminal proceedings on October 16, 2020, issuing notice to the complainant. Tharoor’s counsel argued that the trial court’s order was legally flawed and overlooked the falseness of Babbar’s complaint.
The complaint, filed under sections 499 and 500 of the Indian Penal Code, alleged that Tharoor’s remarks hurt religious sentiments, with Babbar claiming to be a devotee of Lord Shiva. Tharoor was granted bail in June 2019.
In October 2018, Tharoor used the metaphor, “a scorpion sitting on a Shivling,” to describe an unnamed RSS leader’s comparison of Prime Minister Modi.