The Delhi High Court on Tuesday directed Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and five leaders of the ruling Aam Aadmi Party to file their replies within three weeks to the Rs.10 crore damages case moved by Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley against them for their alleged defamatory statements against him and his family members in the DDCA row.
In his civil defamation suit, Mr. Jaitley has sought Rs.10 crore as damages from Mr. Kejriwal and AAP leaders Kumar Vishwas, Ashutosh, Sanjay Singh, Raghav Chadha and Deepak Bajpai for what he described as their defamatory remarks in connection with the alleged irregularities in DDCA, which he headed for about 13 years till 2013.
High Court’s Joint Registrar (Judicial) Kovai Venugopal asked Mr. Kejriwal and his co-defendants in the suit to file written statements within three weeks and permitted Mr. Jaitley to file his rejoinder within two weeks thereafter.
The case was fixed for next hearing on February 5.
The process for issuing summons in the case was dispensed with as the counsel representing the defendants, who had filed caveat, was present in the Joint Registrar’s court to accept notices.
Mr. Jaitley’s civil suit, along with the criminal defamation case filed by him in Patiala House district court here on Monday, has come in the backdrop of attacks on him by Mr. Kejriwal and other AAP leaders over alleged irregularities and financial bunglings in the cricket body.
