New Summons Issued Against YouTuber Dhruv Rathee in Defamation Case

Gurugram, October 14 (Daily Kiran) : The Saket Court in New Delhi has ordered new summons to be issued against YouTuber Dhruv Rathee in a longstanding criminal defamation case. The complaint was filed by Vikas Sankrityayan, also known as Vikas Pandey, who alleges that Rathee’s video titled “BJP IT Cell Part-2” is the basis for the defamation claim. The court has permitted personal service of the summons.

On October 12, the court’s order allowed the process of serving summons at Rathee’s residence in Gurugram to proceed. The complainant was also given permission to accompany the process server to ensure the summons is delivered. According to the complainant’s side, Rathee has now been physically served the summons at his home.

Advocate Sushant Kumar, representing the complainant, delivered the notice in person. He stated in a video that the case dates back to 2018. Rathee was contacted by phone but refused to accept the notice, prompting the security guard of his housing society to assist in posting the notice outside his residence. The next court hearing is scheduled for October 17.

This case has been pending for several years. Vikas Pandey filed the complaint against Rathee for alleged criminal defamation related to the controversial video. The complainant claims that multiple attempts have been made to serve the summons since 2019, but difficulties have arisen in the process.

Additionally, the complainant alleged that Rathee often resides outside India, complicating the progression of the court proceedings. However, this assertion is part of the complainant’s claims and should be viewed in the context of the official case records.

The case has also drawn connections to Arvind Kejriwal, the former Chief Minister of Delhi and Aam Aadmi Party leader. Kejriwal had to apologize to the Supreme Court for retweeting the same video, which had previously drawn significant media attention.

The recent action to serve Rathee has once again highlighted this old case. Following Rathee’s recent presence in India, the process of serving the summons has accelerated, leading the complainant to approach the Saket Court for necessary permissions to ensure the summons was issued and served.

The court’s October 12 order allowing the issuance of summons and personal service is seen as a critical step forward in the case. Under personal service, the involved parties can assist in delivering the summons according to the established procedures.

Meanwhile, lawyer Amita Sachdeva has also filed a defamation suit against Rathee in Saket Court. She stated that the case involves allegedly offensive remarks made about Lord Ram and Sita in one of his videos. The petition requests the court to impose a ban on such content in the future and seeks damages. The next hearing for this matter is set for November 5.