#MeToo: Another case could be made in opposition to Ramani for deleting her Twitter account, Akbar tells courtroom

Former Union minister M J Akbar instructed a Delhi courtroom on Thursday that one other legal case could be made out in opposition to journalist Priya Ramani for deleting her Twitter account, which had “primary evidence”.
Akbar made the submission earlier than Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Ravindra Kumar by senior advocate Geeta Luthra throughout the closing listening to in a legal criticism filed by him in opposition to Ramani for allegedly defaming him by accusing him of sexual misconduct a long time in the past, when he was a journalist.
Ramani had made allegation of sexual misconduct in opposition to Akbar within the wake of #MeToo motion in 2018.
Luthra instructed the courtroom that Ramani deleted her Twitter account together with all its tweets intentionally to subserve the reason for justice.
“This (is a) unusual argument that this Twitter account (Ramani’s), the courtroom didn’t inform me (Ramani) to save lots of so I didn’t. How can one take a protection like this?

“She knows a criminal complaint is pending against her. These are all tweets. They were all primary evidence. Can she destroy evidence? Another criminal case can be made out,” Luthra instructed the courtroom.
The courtroom requested whether or not the account was deleted earlier than the cross-examination, to which Luthra replied in affirmative.
“I would have wanted to cross examine her. This whole thing is destruction of evidence. Suppose the court wanted to see it. Fact is that everything has been deliberately destroyed to subserve the cause of justice,” she stated.At this, the decide requested if Akbar had filed any criticism for destruction of proof.
“We haven’t but we want the court to take cognizance. I’ve brought it to the notice of the court,” Luthra stated.
She stated the deletion spoke quantity about Ramani’s conduct.
“I would have put many twitter comments to her but couldn’t. It is incorrect to say that Twitter account is not evidence. It is relevant. It is the account from which allegations were made against me,” she stated, including that tampering of proof was severe.
Luthra additional termed Ramani’s story of alleged sexual misconduct as “fiction” and stated there was no compulsion on her to affix Asain Age, the paper Akbar was the editor of, however she did.
“There is not any denial that there have been different publication homes. There was no compulsion on her to affix Asain Age however she did. She discovered Asian Age a very good alternative.
“I bring all this which shows that the incident is something that she made up. It something which is not in the natural sequence of things This story is a work of fiction,” she stated.
She additional stated that if Ramani had grievance, there was a mechanism in place since 1860 to deal with such points.
“These lies have left me defending my reputation in the last few years. It is unpardonable. I wonder at what kind of cost has it come to you. You have damaged a person’s 50 years of reputation,” she stated.
She added, “She says in 2017 it was one anonymous article. I say a fictitious article. Had it been a truth, it would have been done in 2017 itself. It now smells of malice. Malice is not necessary to be proved in fact. It has to be seen in effect.”
“Incident she doesn’t prove, date she doesn’t prove, nothing she proves and burden is on her,” she stated, including that there was no foundation of calling Akbar what she did.
Luthra alleged that Ramani’s allegations had been an act to deliberately malign and that there was not a whisper of excellent religion and public curiosity.
“She said there was no overt physical attack. Here also she is self contradictory. She said it was sarcasm then takes alternate defense. Sarcasm is also defamation. Defense is not legally consistent,” the lawyer stated.
The courtroom will additional hear the matter on January 23.
Akbar had filed the legal defamation criticism in opposition to Ramani in October 15, 2018.
He resigned as Union minister on October 17, 2018.
Akbar had earlier instructed the courtroom that Ramani had defamed him by calling him with adjectives comparable to ‘media’s greatest predator’ that harmed his fame.
He has denied all of the allegations of sexual harassment in opposition to the ladies who got here ahead throughout #MeToo marketing campaign in opposition to him.
Over 20 ladies got here up with accounts of the alleged sexual harassment by Akbar whereas they had been working as journalists underneath him.
He termed the allegations “false, fabricated and deeply distressing” and stated he was taking acceptable authorized motion in opposition to them.