The Saket Court of Delhi has issued a summons to YouTuber Dhruv Rathee and others in a defamation suit filed by Suresh Karamshi Nakhua, a spokesperson of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Mumbai unit. Nakhua claims Rathee’s video falsely labeled him as a violent and abusive troll, causing damage to his reputation.
The summons, issued on July 19, 2024, by District Judge Gunjan Gupta, directs Rathee and social media intermediaries to appear in court on August 6, 2024. The suit alleges that on July 7, 2024, Rathee uploaded a video titled “My Reply to Godi Youtubers | Elvish Yadav | Dhruv Rathee” on his YouTube channel, which has garnered over 24 million views and 2.3 million likes.
According to the suit, Rathee claimed in the video that Prime Minister Modi had hosted violent and abusive trolls, including Ankit Jain, Suresh Nakhua, and Tajinder Bagga, at his official residence. Nakhua asserts that the video falsely attributes violent tendencies to him without any basis, with the intent to damage his reputation.
The suit argues that Rathee’s video has caused widespread condemnation and ridicule of Nakhua, leading to irreparable harm to his personal and professional life. The false accusations, according to the suit, have severely damaged Nakhua’s reputation and subjected him to unnecessary scrutiny and criticism.
The court will now hear the case on August 6, 2024, where Rathee and the social media platforms will have an opportunity to respond to the allegations. The outcome of the case will determine whether Rathee’s statements were indeed defamatory and if he will be held liable for the damages caused to Nakhua’s reputation. This case highlights the complex legal issues surrounding online defamation and the responsibility of content creators to ensure the accuracy and fairness of their statements.
