A petition filed by Senior Journalist Barkha Dutt seeking to transfer her criminal complaint against Analog Media, owned by Member of Parliament and Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal to the Special MP/ MLA Court in Rouse Avenue Court Complex, has allowed by the Delhi High Court.
A single-Judge Bench of Justice Anup J Bhambhani said in its order on November 02, that “considering that one of the respondents/proposed accused in the case is a sitting MP, let criminal complaint case being CT No. 9933/2019 (old CC No. 395/1/2019) be transferred from the court of the learned Metropolitan Magistrate, Patiala House Courts, New Delhi to the court of learned District & Sessions Judge, RADC, New Delhi, for assignment to the concerned Special Court set-up for dealing with criminal cases against sitting MPs forthwith.”
The transfer shall be given effect within 7 days.
Over 200 employees of Tiranga TV were sacked by the Sibals without honouring the terms of the contract. She has claimed a sum of Rs 74 lacs as compensation of such arbitrary action, Dutt argued in her complaint.
The petition for transfer is filed in the light of an order passed on 16/03/2020 by the District & Sessions Judge, Patiala House Court, recording that: “A criminal complaint was filed against a sitting Member of Parliament along with other persons before the learned Metropolitan Magistrate, Patiala House Courts, New Delhi; but that since there is a designated court to try cases relating to MPs/ MLAs at Rouse Avenue District Courts, New Delhi, the complaint requires to be transferred to that court.”
The matter had to be listed before the High Court under section 407 of the Criminal Procedure Code, since transfer of the case from Patiala House Courts to Rouse Avenue District Courts would be an inter-Sessions Division transfer.
Case Title: Barkha Dutt Media Pvt. Ltd. v. Analog Media Pvt. Ltd. & Ors.
Appearance: Advocates Raghav Awasthi and Mukesh Sharma (for Petitioner)
