Abhishek Singhvi's defamation notice: London-based lawyer summoned as accused

A Delhi court on Wednesday summoned as accused a London-based lawyer in a criminal defamation complaint filed by senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi.

Singhvi has accused Sarosh Zaiwalla of allegedly making speculative statements against his deceased father in a book claiming that it harmed his reputation.

Metropolitan Magistrate Sumeet Anand asked Zaiwalla to appear before the court on May 29 and said prima facie all essential requirements of defamation stand meted out in the case and there exist sufficient grounds for proceeding further.

According to Singhvi, Zaiwalla in his book made a "speculative" reference to his late father L M Singhvi which was inherently defamatory and clearly libelous on the face of it.

The complaint also claimed that the statements were made with an intention to cause serious harm to Singhvi's reputation and hurt the feelings of his family and relatives.

It alleged that the statements were made without verifying the truth and transform into an imputation.