Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut granted bail after 15-day jail sentence in defamation case
Sanjay Raut, a Sena (UBT) leader, was sentenced to 15 days' imprisonment on a defamation complaint filed by Medha Somaiya.
Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut was granted bail on Thursday by a Mumbai court, after being convicted in a defamation case filed by Medha Somaiya, the wife of BJP leader Kirit Somaiya.
Raut was sentenced to 15 days of simple imprisonment by Judicial Magistrate (First Class) Aarti Kulkarni.
The court found Raut guilty under Section 500 of the Indian Penal Code, which pertains to punishment for defamation. In addition to the jail sentence, a fine of INR 25,000 was imposed on the Rajya Sabha member.
Raut, however, was granted a 30-day suspension of the sentence, allowing him to file an appeal. His lawyer filed applications for both suspension of the sentence and bail, which the court approved.
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The defamation case was filed by Medha Somaiya, who alleged that Raut had made defamatory accusations against her and her husband, linking them to a INR 100 crore scam involving the construction and maintenance of public toilets under the Mira Bhayander Municipal Corporation.
"The statements made by the accused to the media are per se defamatory. The statements have been made to malign my character in the eyes of the general public," Medha Somaiya said in her complaint, which was filed through advocate Vivekanand Gupta.
Kirit Somaiya on jail sentence
Reacting to the court's ruling, Kirit Somaiya said, “Today, the punishment has been given to Uddhav Thackeray as Sanjay Raut is a leader of his party. They both are now exposed. In 28 months, Sanjay Raut couldn't bring a single document.”
"The court said that this is the first time and that's why the sentence is 15 days, if it happens again then the punishment will not be less than 2-5 years," he added.
Somaiya criticised the alleged pressure exerted by the then Uddhav Thackeray-led Maharashtra government, which, according to Somaiya, had prevented the police from accepting his wife's complaint against Raut.
"We tried filing a police complaint against Raut, but it was not accepted because of Thackeray's pressure. We approached the local court here on May 18, 2022, and today, it gave its judgement," Kirit Somaiya added.
Medha Somaiya said she and her husband would not tolerate baseless allegations.
"This case against Raut would set an example for society. If someone tries to tarnish me or my organisation, I will stand up against it," she said.
