Kangana Ranaut, the actress and BJP politician, faces escalating legal challenges in a defamation case, having received no favorable ruling from the Supreme Court. Ranaut opted to withdraw her petition that aimed to have the defamation case dismissed. This case is tied to a 2021 tweet in which she wrongly identified a woman involved in the farmers’ protest as Bilkis Bano of Shaheen Bagh.
The Supreme Court bench, comprising Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta, presided over the case. Justice Mehta clarified that the tweet was not a simple retweet but had added elements, establishing grounds for a trial.
During the hearing of Ranaut’s defamation case, the Supreme Court stated that despite the tweet being a retweet, the case could not be dropped. The court determined that a trial was necessary. The court also issued a strong warning, discouraging any further comments on the tweets to prevent potential adverse impacts on the ongoing case. Ranaut’s lawyer was asked whether she wished to withdraw the petition, leading to the petition’s withdrawal following the court’s observations.
Ranaut’s lawyer defended her by arguing that the tweet was a retweet, originating from someone else. The defense maintained the tweet was misinterpreted and was widely shared. The lawyer explained to the court that the case had been filed, a lower court had issued a summons, and the High Court provided no relief. The original tweet, they added, was not from Kangana.
The Supreme Court considered a petition from Kangana Ranaut, concerning her derogatory remarks about a woman during the 2020-21 farmers’ protest. Ranaut had wrongly identified the woman as Bilkis Bano of Shaheen Bagh. The complaint was lodged in 2021 by 73-year-old Mahinder Kaur from the Bathinda district, who alleged that Ranaut made false accusations against her in a retweet, claiming she was the same elderly woman (Bilkis Bano) who was part of the Shaheen Bagh protests.