Court Dismisses Defamation Case Against Nirmala Sitharaman

A Delhi court has dismissed a criminal defamation complaint filed by Lipika Mitra, wife of ex-AAP MLA Somnath Bharti, against Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. The court found no imputation against Mitra, describing the complaint as largely valueless.

Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Paras Dalal noted that Sitharaman's statements were primarily political criticisms targeting the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and the INDIA bloc, with no specific aim at the complainant. The court found no prima facie defamation offence.

The allegations stemmed from Sitharaman's remarks at a press conference viewed by the complainant as an attempt to harm Bharti’s reputation ahead of the 2024 general elections. However, the court highlighted that these statements were mere reiterations of Mitra's own public allegations against Bharti.