A Delhi court has summoned Sudarshan TV managing director and editor-in-chief Suresh Chavhanke and six others in a defamation case.
The complainant Mohd Tufail Khan runs an NGO and a madrasa named Jamia Arabia Nizami Welfare Educational Society. The NGO supplies shelter and food to about 70 orphans.
Two years ago, in 2022, an Islamic scholar, Mufti Wajahat Qasmi alleged that the NGO was involved in anti-national activities, Bar and Bench reported.
On August 29, 2022, Qasmi posted a tweet alleging the NGO was brainwashing vulnerable children and was involved in illegal activities.
On April 12, 2023, Sudarshan TV ran a programme titled “Madrasa ke naam par bachho se bheek manga rahe hai” with Qasmi’s allegations. Chavhanke anchored the programme.
In response, Khan filed a criminal defamation case against Qasmi, Chavhanke and four others.
In his complaint, Khan alleged that residents along with certain sections of the media barged into his house calling him ‘Bangladeshi’. They also circulated his phone number following which he began receiving death threats.
On October 19, the Delhi court found the alleged acts of the accused persons prima facie defamatory.
The trial court will take up the matter next in January 2025.
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