Trinamool Congress MP Saket Gokhale on Tuesday publicly apologised to former diplomat Lakshmi Murdeshwar Puri for a series of tweets he posted in 2021.
The Rajya Sabha member acknowledged that his social media posts, published on June 13 and 23 that year, contained false and unverified claims regarding Puri’s alleged foreign property purchase.
In a statement posted on X (formerly Twitter), Gokhale said, “I unconditionally apologise for having put out a series of tweets against Amb. Lakshmi Murdeshwar Puri on 13th and 23rd June 2021, which tweets contained wrong and unverified allegations in relation to the purchase of property by Ambassador Puri abroad, which I sincerely regret.”
Court Pulls Up Gokhale For Non-Compliance
Gokhale’s apology came shortly after the Delhi High Court issued him a show-cause notice for failing to comply with an earlier court order in a defamation suit filed by Puri. The court had, in a July 1, 2024 judgment, directed the TMC leader to publish a public apology within four weeks and pay ₹50 lakh in damages within eight weeks.
Despite the ruling, the court noted that Gokhale had not followed through. On April 24, 2025, the High Court ordered that his monthly salary of ₹1,90,000 be attached until the full sum was recovered.
Contempt Warning From Previous Bench
Senior Advocate Maninder Singh, representing Lakshmi Puri and briefed by Karanjawala & Company, told the court that a separate bench hearing a contempt plea had given Gokhale a final two-week window on May 9, 2025, to comply with the original decree. Singh also pointed out that Gokhale neither challenged the directive nor informed the current bench about it—and had still failed to act.
After considering submissions from both sides, including arguments from Gokhale’s counsel Naman Joshi, Justice Manmeet Pritam Singh Arora observed that the MP was ignoring court orders and abusing judicial process. The court said that despite being given ample time, Gokhale had shown no intent to follow the judgment.
Show-Cause Notice Issued
The High Court has now directed Gokhale to respond within a week, explaining why he should not be sent to civil prison for defying its orders. The next steps in the case will depend on whether the court accepts his apology as genuine compliance or views it as a delayed attempt to avoid legal consequences.
Background
The legal dispute began after Gokhale posted defamatory content about Lakshmi Puri in 2021. At the time, she was a high-ranking diplomat and former UN Assistant Secretary-General. She sued for defamation, leading to the ₹50 lakh damages order and mandated public apology—both of which had been ignored until now.
(Inputs By Sambhav Sharma)
Read More: Supreme Court, Delhi High Court, States High Court, International
