Professor Medha Somaiya, former BJP MP Kirit Somaiya‘s wife, has filed a civil suit against Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut demanding Rs 100 crores as compensation for defaming the BJP leader. The case has been filed in the Bombay High Court (HC).
The suit says Raut “be ordered and decreed to pay” to Medha “or to deposit the sum of Rs 100,00,000 or such other sum as the court may deem fit, just and proper as and by way of damages with the chief minister’s relief fund or with as the court may deem fit.“
Medha has also asked the court to direct Raut to publish an apology to Somaiya and retract the allegations and defamatory materials published in Shiv Sena’s mouthpiece Saamna. She further asked that the retraction be displayed prominently on the cover page in whatever format the court deems appropriate.
Highlighting other demands in Medha Somaiya’s suit, India Today notes:
She requested a temporary injunction prohibiting Raut and his associates from holding any press conference or publishing, printing, circulating, or distributing any press notes that are defamatory of her or her family members.
Medha has also requested that the court issue a permanent injunction prohibiting Raut and his associates from making or republishing defamatory articles or materials, or any article based on the alleged incident, or from printing, circulating, distributing, or publishing any material that is defamatory to her in any way published by Raut in the future.
Medha’s plea said that on April 12, 2022, she came across a newspaper article in the daily newspaper published by Saamna accusing her of a “toilet scam”. Soon, other newspapers also picked up the story, attributing it to Raut’s claim.
The plea said that Raut made all of the allegations and accusations without any proof of any kind and tried to smear her reputation by making false and baseless statements and comments.
Raut’s actions by alleging and accusing her, her family members, and organizations of being far more malicious and with the sole intent of creating false impressions in the minds of the general public at large, the plea said.
It added that Raut “concocted only to indulge in some sensationalism, without any regard for truth and with a view to tarnish her image and to make wrongful gains. Medha is a doctorate and carries a high reputation in society and in her profession. The defamatory materials have hurt her tremendously by lowering her standing in society and in the eyes of the general public, well-wishers, etc.”
It must be pointed out that Somaiya had recently filed a criminal complaint against Raut in the magistrate’s court in Mazgaon.
(Featured Image Source: India Today)
