Lakshmi Puri Case: Delhi HC Dismisses Saket Gokhale’s Petition To Recall Defamation Damages

Delhi High Court

The Delhi High Court on Friday dismissed Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Saket Gokhale’s plea seeking to recall a judgment that had ordered him to pay Rs 50 lakh in damages and issue a public apology to Lakshmi Murdeshwar Puri, former Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations, in a defamation case.

Court Upholds July 2024 Ruling

Justice Purushaindra Kumar Gaurav, while rejecting Gokhale’s application under Order IX Rule 13 of the Civil Procedure Code, maintained the July 1, 2024 judgment and decree. The court directed Gokhale to apologise publicly to Puri within four weeks and pay the damages within eight weeks.

While acknowledging the arguments put forth by Gokhale’s counsels, Amarjit Singh Bedi and Harsha Vinoy, the judge ultimately upheld the original order. Senior Advocate Maninder Singh, briefed by Karanjawala & Co. and supported by a legal team including Meghna Mishra, Palak Sharma, Shreyansh Rathi, and Rohit Kumar, represented Puri.

Court Rejects Plea For Leniency

During the proceedings, Gokhale’s counsel urged the court to take a “liberal approach,” citing the MP’s limited financial capacity. However, this appeal was firmly opposed by Maninder Singh, who argued for strict enforcement of the earlier ruling.

Separately, another bench of the High Court directed that a portion of Gokhale’s salary—reported to be Rs 1.9 lakh per month—be attached to recover the unpaid amount. The order mandates that the attachment remain in place until the full Rs 50 lakh is deposited.

The bench, led by Justice Manmeet Pritam Arora, noted that Gokhale had failed to provide a satisfactory explanation for not complying with the earlier ruling. Referring to Section 60(i) of the Civil Procedure Code, the court observed that up to two-thirds of his salary could legally be attached.

Background Of Case

The defamation case dates back to 2021, when Gokhale posted a series of tweets questioning a property purchase in Switzerland by Lakshmi Puri and raising concerns about the assets of her and her husband, Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri. He also tagged Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, demanding an ED probe.

In July 2023, the court ruled that the tweets were defamatory. Citing Shakespeare’s Othello, the court highlighted the serious damage done to Puri’s reputation. It ordered Gokhale to publish an apology in The Times of India and pin the same on his Twitter account for six months.

Earlier, in July 2021, the court had issued an interim injunction requiring Gokhale to delete the tweets within 24 hours and refrain from making any further defamatory remarks.