SC to examine if magistrate can summon police report in defamation case

The Supreme Court is to examine whether a magistrate can take cognizance of a defamation complaint after calling for a report on the incident from the police.

The issue arose as, at the outset of the hearing of the plea by Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi seeking quashing of a defamation complaint against him, a bench of Justice Dipak Misra and Justice Rohinton Fali Nariman asked if in such a case, a magistrate can take cognizance of it after calling for a report from the police.

Justice Misra referred to the judgment in the Subramanian Swamy case rendered by him wherein the top court had held that the police has no role in a defamation case and the magistrate has to take cognizance of the complaint based on his satisfaction.

An RSS functionary has filed a demation case against Gandhi for blaming the saffron organisation for Mahatma Gandhi's assassination.

--IANS

pk/rn/vm