Javed Akhtar seeks revision of summons issued by magistrate court in criminal case

In 2021, Dubey filed a complaint against Akhtar after he expressed his views in a television interview on September 3, 2021, on the rise of the Taliban in Afghanistan. The complaint alleged that Akhtar made defamatory comments against RSS in the said interview and hurt the feelings of people connected to the organisation

Mumbai: Lyricist and writer Javed Akhtar has filed a revision application in a sessions court in the city against a December 13, 2022 summons issued to him by a Mulund magistrate court in connection with a criminal case lodged against him by advocate Santosh Ramswaroop Dubey in 2021.

London: Indian Poet and screenwriter, Javed Akhtar, poses for portraits at the Taj hotel in central London, Wednesday, July 12, 2017, ahead of a presentation by Baithak UK on Indian Cinema entitled, Yesterday and Today, where Bollywood film stars and creatives across generations will discuss their work. AP/PTI(AP7_13_2017_000058A) (AP)

According to the complaint filed by Dubey, Akhtar was booked for making defamatory comments against RSS.

The revision application of Akhtar filed through advocate Jay Kumar Bharadwaj stated that the advocate’s complaint was without locus and was an attempt to get fame and extort money.

Akhtar’s application claimed that the summons issued to him by the magistrate was not maintainable as he (Akhtar) was residing beyond the territorial jurisdiction of the court.

He has further stated that though the magistrate had heard and noted the statements of the complainant and two witnesses, he had failed to abide by the procedure mandated in section 202 (1) of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) wherein the magistrate either investigated the issue himself or got it investigated, before issuing process and summons to the accused.

In light of these submissions, Akhtar’s revision application states that if the summons by the magistrate is not stayed, he would be subjected to grave injustice and inconvenience. The application is scheduled to come up for hearing before the sessions court in Mumbai on January 24.

In 2021, Dubey filed a complaint against Akhtar after he expressed his views in a television interview on September 3, 2021, on the rise of the Taliban in Afghanistan. The complaint alleged that Akhtar made defamatory comments against RSS in the said interview and hurt the feelings of people connected to the organisation. Dubey claimed to be a supporter/volunteer/swayamsevak of RSS and said he was aggrieved by the comments and hence filed a defamation complaint against Akhtar.