Delhi Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar has taken legal action against news portal The Wire, seeking the removal of a defamatory article that allegedly linked Kumar’s son, Karan Chauhan, to a land valuation controversy involving the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) and a road project, Dwarka Expressway.
The contentious article suggested a connection between Karan Chauhan and a case concerning the enhanced valuation of a 19-acre land acquired by NHAI for the road project, attributing this information to the father-in-law of one of the land’s beneficiaries.
Kumar approached the Delhi High Court, urging The Wire to remove the article, contending that the report had a far-reaching impact on social media and contradicted the factual record. Senior advocates Maninder Singh and Rajshekhar Rao represented Kumar during the court hearing.
The legal representatives highlighted that Kumar had promptly intervened upon discovering the overvaluation issue, directing further investigation and monitoring of the case to prevent any potential loss to public funds. Additionally, they emphasized Kumar’s proactive steps in coordinating the inquiry and ultimately referring the case to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).
The article’s contents were labeled as misleading, defamatory, and divorced from factual accuracy in the legal notice sent to The Wire and its reporter, Meetu Jain, by Kumar’s advocate, Bani Dikshit. The notice clarified Kumar’s efforts to ensure no wrongful loss to public funds and denounced the sensationalized and allegedly malicious reporting.
Interestingly, Delhi’s vigilance minister, Atishi Marlena, had previously recommended the removal of Kumar and the divisional commissioner Ashwani Kumar from their posts following a complaint by Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. Marlena’s report alleged Kumar’s involvement and indicated the delayed initiation of an inquiry into the excessive compensation hike only after NHAI raised concerns.
The court is set to resume the hearing on November 21, 2023, regarding the defamation case initiated by Naresh Kumar against The Wire.
Sources By Agencies
