Activist Medha Patkar Sentenced to 5 Months in Jail in 24-Year-Old Defamation Case

New Delhi: A Delhi court on Monday sentenced activist Medha Patkar to five months’ simple imprisonment and imposed a fine of Rs 10 lakh in a 23-year-old defamation case filed by Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena. The case dates back to when Saxena led an NGO in Gujarat.

Metropolitan Magistrate Raghav Sharma announced the sentence after evaluating the prolonged duration and evidence of the case. However, the sentence is suspended for a month, allowing Patkar to appeal the decision.

Patkar’s request for release on probation was denied by the judge, who cited the nature of the damages and her age and health as factors for a moderate punishment. The offence carried a maximum sentence of two years’ simple imprisonment, a fine, or both.

The court previously noted that Patkar’s statements calling Saxena a “coward” and accusing him of hawala transactions were inherently defamatory and aimed at damaging his reputation. Additionally, Patkar’s claim that Saxena was “mortgaging” Gujarat’s resources to foreign interests was deemed a direct attack on his integrity and public service.

The legal battle between Patkar and Saxena began in 2000 when Patkar sued Saxena for publishing adverse advertisements against her and the Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA). Saxena, who was then leading the Ahmedabad-based NGO ‘Council for Civil Liberties,’ filed two defamation cases against Patkar in 2001 for derogatory remarks on TV and a defamatory press statement.