Delhi court bars journalists, websites from publishing alleged defamatory, unverified reports on Adani Group

A Delhi court on Saturday issued an interim order restraining several journalists and two websites from circulating what it described as prima facie defamatory and unverified content about the Adani Group. Special Civil Judge Anuj Kumar Singh of the Rohini Courts granted the ex parte ad-interim injunction in favour of Adani Enterprises Ltd against the named journalists and platforms.

The journalists include Paranjoy Guha Thakurta, Ravi Nair, Abir Dasgupta, Ayaskant Das and Ayush Joshi, while the websites are pranjoy.in, adaniwatch.org and adanifiles.com.au.

The judge observed that there existed a prima facie case supporting the Adani Group’s claims and that the balance of convenience leaned in its favour. He noted that continued publication, circulation, or re-tweeting of the reports could further damage the company’s public image and expose it to a media trial.

“….it would suffice the interest of justice to restrain defendants no. 1 to 10 from publishing/distributing/circulating unverified, unsubstantiated and ex-facie defamatory reports about the plaintiff allegedly tarnishing the reputation of the plaintiff till the next date of hearing,” the order stated.

According to the suit, the defendants were operating “agenda driven” websites and repeatedly publishing false and defamatory material against the Adani Group, as well as its Founder and Chairman. It further claimed that in addition to the websites, the content was being shared widely on social media platforms and other portals, with several unidentified persons contributing to its circulation.

The company alleged that it was being deliberately and maliciously targeted, which had disrupted global operations, shaken investor confidence, wiped out large sums of investor wealth, and triggered panic in the markets.

The court, while issuing a summons, remarked that denial of the requested relief would result in irreparable harm to Adani Enterprises. “Further, considering that the plaintiff has expressed his grievance of alleged defamatory articles which are of recent origin and still mushrooming, at this stage, there is no material to opine that the plaintiff has acquiesced to the circulation of the alleged defamatory articles and posts,” the judge added.

The defendants were instructed to delete or expunge the disputed material from their articles, social media posts, or tweets. If deletion was not feasible, the court ordered its removal within five days.

“Also, attention of defendants is drawn to Rule 3 of Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code), Rules 2021, requiring due diligence by the intermediary in hosting/storing/publishing such material. Specifically, attention of the defendants is also drawn to Rule 3(1)(d) of the aforesaid IT Rules, it is also incumbent upon the intermediary to remove/disable access to such content within 36 hours from receipt of such order of the Court or on being notified by the Appropriate Government or its agency,” the court said.

Senior Advocate Jagdeep Sharma, assisted by Advocates Naman Joshi, Vijay Aggarwal, Guneet Sidhu, Verdaan Jain, Muskan Aggarwal and Deepak Aggarwal, represented Adani Enterprises.
(With LiveLaw Inputs)