Defamation Case: Jabalpur Court Issues Bailable Warrant Against Shivraj Singh Chouhan, Ors

A court in Jabalpur (Madhya Pradesh) issued a bailable warrant against former chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, state BJP chief V D Sharma, and former state minister Bhupendra Singh for their failure to furnish undertakings in a criminal defamation case.

The case stems from a complaint filed by Congress leader and Rajya Sabha member Vivek Tankha. Magistrate Vishveshwari Mishra of the special court for cases against MPs and MLAs issued bailable warrants, directing the three BJP leaders to appear on May 7, as stated by their lawyer Shyam Vishwakarma.

On March 22, the court granted Chouhan and the other two exemptions until June 7 from appearing before it. It also instructed them to provide certain undertakings. However, advocate Vishvakarma stated that it was unclear what kind of undertakings were required. He added that the BJP leaders subsequently approached the court on Tuesday seeking clarification.

Tankha, a senior Supreme Court lawyer and former state advocate general, alleged in his complaint that the BJP leaders tarnished his image by falsely claiming that he was involved in a Supreme Court case related to OBC quota in the 2021 Panchayat elections in the state. He has also filed a civil defamation suit against Sharma, Chouhan, and Singh, demanding damages of Rs 10 crore.