Trinamool Congress (TMC) MP Saket Gokhale.
| Photo Credit: ANI

The Delhi High Court has rejected TMC MP Saket Gokhale’s proposal to place his apology for defamatory posts on X against Union Minister Hardeep Puri’s wife, Lakshmi Puri, in a “sealed cover.”

“…the proposal of placing the apology in a sealed cover is rejected and the apology as directed by the judgment/decree shall be published within the next two weeks, in the manner decreed,” the court said in its May 9 order.

The court noted that Mr. Gokhale has not complied with the July 1, 2024 direction of the court to issue an apology and pay ₹50 lakh in damages to the former Indian diplomat.

The court’s order follows a petition by Mrs. Puri claiming that Mr. Gokhale tarnished her goodwill and reputation by making reckless and false allegations about her financial affairs in the context of an apartment that she owned in Geneva.

“… in the opinion of this court, there is no reason why the court should take the apology in a sealed cover and then wait for the result of an appeal,” the court said.

Defendant stalled

It said, “Considering that the decree was passed in July 2024, no challenge was preferred in the statutory period, the challenge which was finally preferred was dismissed with a detailed judgment, and the respondent (Mr. Gokhale) has simply tarried, lingered and procrastinated, but still not complied with the judgment/decree.”

The court said Mr. Gokhale was a parliamentarian and a reputed member of society, and more than 10 months had passed but till date there was no order secured from the court impeding the compliance of the July 1, 2024 judgment.