In a significant relief to journalist Arnab Goswami, the Delhi High Court on Tuesday quashed the criminal defamation case filed by advocate Vikram Singh Chauhan, who was once accused of assaulting JNU student leader Kanhaiya Kumar at the Patiala House Court in 2016.
Justice Neena Bansal Krishna ruled that the remarks made by Goswami during a televised debate on Times Now - where Chauhan was allegedly referred to as a "goon" - could not amount to criminal defamation under law.
"The freedom of a journalist to express opinion, however sharp, cannot be curbed unless it crosses the line of malice," the bench observed while pronouncing the order.
Chauhan had claimed the comments were defamatory and had damaged his professional standing, but the Court disagreed, noting that the statements were made in the context of a widely reported public incident.
The judge further remarked that public figures must tolerate a higher degree of criticism, and concluded there was no sufficient ground to proceed with the complaint.
Accordingly, the High Court quashed the summons and the defamation proceedings against Goswami and other Times Group executives, bringing the matter to an end.
Case Title: Arnab Goswami v. State & Ors and other connected matters