HC reserves order in defamation case against Union min Shivraj, State BJP chief

Jabalpur: The MP High Court on Saturday reserved its order in a defamation case involving former chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, BJP state president VD Sharma, and former minister Bhupendra Singh.A single bench of Justice Sanjay Yadav reserved the order after hearing arguments from both the petitioners and respondents.Congress Rajya Sabha member and senior advocate Vivek Krishna Tankha had filed a defamation complaint seeking Rs 10 crore in damages in the MPMLA Court in Jabalpur, against Chouhan, Sharma, and Singh.Tankha's complaint stated that he had not made any statements regarding OBC reservations in panchayats during proceedings in the Supreme Court. Instead, he had advocated for delimitation and rotation in panchayat and municipal elections in Madhya Pradesh. However, when the Supreme Court put a stay on OBC reservations in these elections, BJP functionaries misrepresented his statements, the complaint states.According to the complaint, Shivraj Singh Chouhan, VD Sharma, and Bhupendra Singh made false statements, blaming Tankha for the stay on OBC reservations, which damaged his reputation and amounted to criminal defamation.On Jan 20, this year, the MPMLA special court had directed the registration of a defamation case against the three BJP netas. In response, the three leaders approached the high court, seeking relief.The MPMLA Court had initially directed Chouhan, Sharma, and Singh to appear in person on March 22. However, they filed an application seeking exemption from personal appearance, citing their involvement in the Lok Sabha elections and requested an extension until June 7. The court accepted the application with the condition that they personally appear on April 2 to give an undertaking.When the three leaders failed to appear on April 2, the court issued a bailable warrant against them. The former chief minister's advocate then filed an application to appear on June 7, which was rejected. Against this, the three leaders had approached the high court.On Saturday, the single bench heard both petitions. Senior advocate Surendra Singh represented the BJP leaders, while senior advocate Kapil Sibal appeared for the complainant.