Court to hear M.J. Akbar’s defamation case on October 31
A GROUP OF 19 WOMEN JOURNALISTS HAVE EXPRESSED SUPPORT FOR PRIYA RAMANI
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ADelhi court yesterday agreed to hear journalist-turned-politician M.J. Akbar’s defamation suit against one of the many women who accused him of sexual misconduct during his time as a newspaper editor.
Akbar, who stepped down from Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s cabinet of ministers on Wednesday, was asked by the court to record his statement on October 31. He tendered his resignation as Minister of State for External Affairs, amid growing demands after 20 women levelled allegations of sexual misconduct on him.
Journalist Priya Ramani, who was the first woman to call out Akbar under the growing #MeToo movement in India, said the truth was her “only defence”.
“M.J. Akbar seeks to silence through intimidation and harassment. Those who have spoken against Akbar have done so at great risk to personal and professional lives. Truth and the absolute truth are my only defence,” ■ Ramani told Gulf News.
A group of 19 women journalists, who worked with The Asian Age newspaper in 1990s, expressed support for Ramani.
Akbar was the senior editor of The Asian Age at that time. Some of the women journalists claimed to have been sexually harassed by him, while others were a witness to alleged episodes of sexual misconduct.
Yesterday, advocate Geeta Luthra, who is representing Akbar, said Ramani’s tweets and articles had caused “irreparable harm” to the former minister’s reputation. ■
“Priya Ramani’s article and tweets have spoiled his reputation and goodwill, built over 40 years. M.J. Akbar has resigned due to these allegations. The 1,200 likes and 200 retweets show how widely the article was read and her tweets were picked up by international media,” Luthra told the court.
Akbar denied all claims of sexual misconduct and termed them as “false, fabricated and spiced up”. Meanwhile, the Editors’ Guild of India is supporting the 20 journalists fighting against Akbar, and asked him to withdraw the case.