Maharashtra minority panel chief Pyare Khan files Rs 250 crore defamation suit against five

Nagpur: Pyare Khan, chairman of the Maharashtra State Minorities Commission, has filed a defamation suit in a civil court against five people, alleging damage to his reputation. He has sought Rs 50 crore in damages from each defendant, Rs 250 crore in all.

Senior Division Civil Judge A.D. Karbhajan issued notices to all five defendants on Saturday.

According to Khan, a protest was held in the Mahal area of Nagpur on September 28 by the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) and the Bajrang Dal. Khan says posters carrying allegedly objectionable and defamatory messages against him were displayed during the protest.

The suit claims the posters linked Khan's meeting with gangster Abu Salem in jail to the 1993 Mumbai bomb blasts. Khan alleges that such messages were meant to portray him as anti-national, damaging his standing in society and his image.

Khan also said that photographs, videos and media reports of the protest spreading on social media widened the circulation of the allegedly defamatory material.

Khan has asked the court to order the removal of the offending social media posts and videos. He has also sought a bar on their further circulation and a direction to all the defendants to apologise publicly.

For now, the court has only issued notices to the defendants. Further legal proceedings in the case will take place before the court.