Bengaluru: The Karnataka High Court has stated that it is possible to sue even a political party for defamation while refusing to quash the defamation case filed against the BJP by Congress MLA Rizwan Arshad from Shivajinagar.
The BJP state unit and its former president had filed an application seeking cancellation of the defamation case filed by Arshad against the BJP in 2019. A single member bench headed by Justice Krishna S Dixit rejected the petition on the ground that not only a person but an association of individuals, including political parties, can be named as 'accused' in criminal defamation cases.
Sections 499 and 500 of the Indian Penal Code state that a consortium of individuals such as the petitioner can be made a party to such criminal proceedings, the court added. "In a functioning democracy like ours, political parties and elected representatives need adequate protection," the court observed.
Disposing of the petition, the bench clarified that the views expressed by the court in this regard will not have any effect on the same defamation case pending before the special court.
"Party cannot be considered as a person as per the Indian Penal Code sections," BJP's lawyer argued during the hearing. Opposing this, the lawyer for Rizwan, said, "As a "person" is defined in Section 11 of the IPC, the party is also an organisation consisting of many individuals. It may or may not be registered. Yet all individuals, including governments, companies and trade unions, have their own respect. In this case, defamation case has been filed on the ground that the dignity of the original complainant has been affected. It is right that the special court is taking action against it," he told the bench.
In 2019, BJP posted a derogatory comment on its social media handle saying Rizwan Arshad, a member of the Legislative Council, was involved in many election irregularities. Arshad filed a police complaint against the BJP and a man named Balaji Ashwin said that he was being threatened by BJP's posts.
Based on which, the Special Court of People's Representatives took cognizance and issued summons to the BJP party and its president. The BJP, in turn, filed an application in the high court.
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