The Delhi High Court on Wednesday orally remarked that conspiracy against the Prime Minister amounts to treason and is a very serious crime.
Justice Jasmeet Singh said during a hearing that the allegation that someone has hatched a conspiracy against the Prime Minister cannot be made irresponsibly and must be based on solid and sufficient reasons.
The court commented, “Conspiracy to target the PM is an offense under the IPC. It amounts to sedition.”
The court was hearing a defamation suit filed by Biju Janata Dal (BJD) MP and senior lawyer Pinaki Mishra against lawyer Jai Anant Dehadrai, in which the latter accused Mishra of being involved in a conspiracy to target Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Was imposed.
During the proceedings, Mishra’s lawyer highlighted that Dehadrai’s relationship with Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra had ended acrimoniously. He clarified that the allegations pertain not to Mishra but to a different party.
Mishra’s lawyer, citing Dehadrai’s statements, pointed to the allegations against Mishra, including his alleged involvement in a conspiracy to target the Prime Minister.
In response, Dehadrai’s lawyer cited the close relationship between Mishra and Mahua Moitra as the basis for the allegations. But when Dehadrai’s lawyer was asked to prove the allegations of conspiracy against the PM by an MP, he could not provide any concrete evidence.
“These are serious allegations about a country’s PM. You can’t be happy with this, can you?” The court said. “You are making a serious allegation of conspiracy against the PM by an MP, you confirm it or we will impose prohibitory orders.”
When the lawyer arguing on behalf of Dehadrai said that he had “personally witnessed the hatching of the conspiracy”, the court replied, “I agree that there were close relationships between them. What you are saying will have serious consequences. You are talking about the highest office of the county.”
The court also said that Mishra was an eminent member of the bar and deserved respect.
Mishra has sued Dehadrai for defamation, citing corruption allegations and derogatory names such as “Canning Lane,” “Oriya Babu,” and “Puri ke Dalal.”
Apart from seeking damages and an apology, Mishra has requested the court to restrain Dehadrai from making defamatory statements and remove such content from various platforms