Delhi Court Orders Woman to Pay Rs 15 Lakh for Defaming Ex-Husband

Delhi's Saket District Court has ordered a woman to pay Rs 15 lakh to her ex-husband for defamation and malicious litigation. The court found that the woman’s actions injured his reputation and professional growth. The marriage, which had lasted from 2001 to 2021, ended in divorce due to cruelty.

Delhi's Saket District Court has mandated that a woman pay Rs 15 lakh to her former husband for defaming him and engaging in malicious and false litigation. District Judge Sunil Beniwal passed the order, asserting that the woman's actions harmed her ex-husband's reputation and hindered his professional progress.

The district judge stated, 'The defendant (ex-wife) is directed to pay damages of Rs 15 lakh to the plaintiff (man) for defamation, citing libel and direct damage resulting from the defendant's actions.' The judgment, issued on July 29, noted that the couple's marriage, solemnized in 2001 under the Hindu Marriage Act, was dissolved in 2021 on grounds of cruelty.

The man had sought Rs 25 lakh in damages from his ex-wife, claiming defamation, malicious litigation, and an 18 percent annual interest rate. He alleged that the woman continued to defame him via emails to his relatives and used abusive language against him and his mother while communicating with friends. The court also noted the man's major surgery in March 2022, which cost him Rs 6 lakh, as part of its judgment on July 29, 2024.

(With inputs from agencies.)