MUMBAI: The Esplanade Metropol
itan Magistrate Court on Friday convicted a lawyer for defaming IPS officer KMM Prasanna, currently serving as inspector general of police, Establishment, and sentenced him to one month’s simple imprisonment.
The case originates from an April 2015 application filed by advocate Naveen Chomal on behalf of former police constable Dharmaraj Kalokhe, who was arrested in a drug case involving Baby Patankar. Kalokhe was arrested under the NDPS Act after Marine Drive police seized around 112kg of suspected mephedrone from his locker at the police station.
At the time, Prasanna was an additional commissioner of police in Mumbai. He was aggrieved by a claim made in Chomal’s application on behalf of Kalokhe. The application sought a direction for the police to interrogate Kalokhe only in the presence of a lawyer and mentioned that a Customs officer and Prasanna were being probed by the Satara police in connection with the case.
Prasanna, in his complaint, highlighted multiple news articles and television reports that referred to the defamatory statements made by the accused regarding his alleged role in the drug seizure case. He stated that the lawyer’s imputations were false and damaging to his reputation.
Chomal defended himself by claiming that the statements were made on the instructions of his client, Kalokhe, and therefore he should not be held liable. However, Metropolitan Magistrate Hemant Joshi rejected this defence, stating that as an officer of the court, the advocate should not have mentioned Prasanna’s name without proof. The court noted that the Khandala police had already reported that Prasanna was not being interrogated for involvement in the case. Furthermore, the court observed that media articles showed the advocate submitted defamatory information without verifying the truth.
{{/usCountry}}Chomal defended himself by claiming that the statements were made on the instructions of his client, Kalokhe, and therefore he should not be held liable. However, Metropolitan Magistrate Hemant Joshi rejected this defence, stating that as an officer of the court, the advocate should not have mentioned Prasanna’s name without proof. The court noted that the Khandala police had already reported that Prasanna was not being interrogated for involvement in the case. Furthermore, the court observed that media articles showed the advocate submitted defamatory information without verifying the truth.
{{/usCountry}}The court reiterated previous high court statements, emphasising that an advocate is not merely a mouthpiece for a client and cannot commit acts that bring disrepute to public servants. Additionally, the court noted that Chomal did not stop at filing the application in court but also revealed its contents to the media.
Convicting Chomal for defamation, the court concluded that the lawyer knowingly published the defamatory statements, harming the reputation of the IPS officer. Chomal has been sentenced to one month of simple imprisonment and fined ₹5,000.
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