Arun Jaitley files fresh Rs 10-cr defamation suit against Kejriwal

Kejriwal approaches high court to quash criminal summons in separate hearing

The Arun Jaitley, Arvind Kejriwal defamation row intensified further in the Delhi High Court on Monday with the Union Finance Minister filing a fresh Rs 10 crore defamation suit against the Delhi Chief Minister, while Kejriwal also approached the court to quash a March 9 trial court summons issued in the criminal proceedings also filed against him by Arun Jaitley.
 
Monday's action by Jaitley comes after senior advocate Ram Jethmalani's intense cross-examination of the Finance Minister last week with regard to his previous Rs 10 crore defamation case against Kejriwal. During the cross-examination Jethmalani had made several assertions against Jaitley including that of 'being guilty of crimes and crookery'. Offended by the objectionable words, Jaitley had demanded an explanation whether these provocative statements were the result of a personal tiff - to which the 93-year old veteran lawyer clarified had been used on the instructions of Arvind Kejriwal. Building on this response, the Jaitley camp has citied portions of the cross-examination order sheet and sued Kejriwal for a further Rs 10 crore their latest move against the AAP supremo.
 
Defending his position, Kejriwal's lawyers have denied any such instructions being given to the senior lawyer conducting the cross-examination while Jethmalani has stated that in a suit for defamation, the personal character of the plaintiff is of extreme importance to ascertain the reputation of the individual. The initial Rs 10 crore defamation suit, the cross-examination of which has led up to this latest controversy, was initiated by Jaitley against Kejriwal and five other AAP leaders for accusing the Finance Minister of financial irregularities in the Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) during his tenure as president of the body between the years of 2000 and 2013. This fresh defamation action is now expected to be heard by the high court on Tuesday.
 
In addition to the civil defamation suit, Jaitley has also filed a criminal case of defamation against the six high-ranking AAP members in the Patiala House Court, which is supposed to be heard again on August 5. In the latest series of events relating to these criminal proceedings - first filed in December 2015 - Kejriwal again moved the Delhi High Court on Monday against a March 9 summons issued by the trial court to the Delhi Chief Minister and the other five accused.
 
The advocate appearing on behalf of AAP leaders informed the court that they are seeking the quashing of criminal complaint against them and had sought for a short date to complete the necessary formalities and proceed with their challenge. After considering the petition, Justice A K Chawla listed the matter for further consideration on September 6.
 
On October 19, the Delhi High Court had rejected an earlier plea of the six accused to stay the trial court proceedings during the pendency of the civil defamation suit, which the court had termed 'devoid of merit' and allowed the criminal case against them to continue simultaneously. Arvind Kejrwal and the five other AAP members had got bail from the trial court in April of this year, after personally appearing before Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Sumit Dass.