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DDCA Defamation Case: Delhi HC Suspends Kirti Azad, Seeks Response From Kejriwal

Delhi HC Suspends Kirti Azad, Seeks Response From Kejriwal In DDCA Defamation Case
NEW DELHI, INDIA - DECEMBER 25: Chief Minister of Delhi Arvind Kejriwal addresses the media and press at Old Secretariat Delhi Vidhan Sabha on December 25, 2015 in New Delhi, India. Targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, Arvind Kejriwal asked why they were afraid of a probe into the affairs of Delhi's cricket body. LG Najeeb Jung has questioned the legality of appointment of inquiry by Arvind Kejriwal Government to probe DDCA issue (Photo by Arun Sharma/Hindustan Times via Getty Images)
Hindustan Times via Getty Images
NEW DELHI, INDIA - DECEMBER 25: Chief Minister of Delhi Arvind Kejriwal addresses the media and press at Old Secretariat Delhi Vidhan Sabha on December 25, 2015 in New Delhi, India. Targeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, Arvind Kejriwal asked why they were afraid of a probe into the affairs of Delhi's cricket body. LG Najeeb Jung has questioned the legality of appointment of inquiry by Arvind Kejriwal Government to probe DDCA issue (Photo by Arun Sharma/Hindustan Times via Getty Images)

NEW DELHI -- The Delhi High Court today sought response from Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and suspended BJP MP Kirti Azad in a civil defamation suit filed by DDCA for their alleged remarks against the cricket body regarding its functioning and finances.

Joint Registrar Anil Kumar Sisodia, after perusing the suit filed by Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA), held that the petition is "maintainable, so the defendants (Kejriwal and Azad) need to clear their stand".

The registrar said that the defendants will file their response before March 2.

The court's order came on the plea by DDCA that Kejriwal "with prior motive, has recently indulged in certain false, shocking, scandalous, defamatory, baseless, slanderous, malicious, disgraceful and outrageous statements which are defamatory against them".

Advocate Sangram Patnaik, appearing for DDCA, said that Kirti Azad has also indulged in making such statements, "which were made solely with an agenda to defame and cause harm to the plaintiff (DDCA), for self-serving and motivated reasons".

He said that the allegations against DDCA regarding financial irregularities and corruption in selections at the junior level were "maligning the image" of the cricket body.

"Consequently, even the conservatively, DDCA has suffered a loss of more than Rs 500 crore. However, DDCA is choosing to file the present suit for the damages arising out of the said defamation by the defendants, in the sum of Rs five crore (Rs 2.5 crore each).

"In addition to this, a public apology is also demanded by DDCA from Kejriwal and Azad," the complaint said.

Kejriwal and five others of his party have already been dragged to the high court by Finance Minister Arun Jaitley for issuing allegedly false and defamatory statements against him and his family members.

Jaitley has sought damages of Rs 10 crore from them.

Apart from this, the six Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders are also facing a criminal defamation case filed against them in the trial court by the minister.

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This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost India, which closed in 2020. Some features are no longer enabled. If you have questions or concerns about this article, please contact indiasupport@huffpost.com.