Court Dismisses Thackeray and Raut's Defamation Appeal in 'Saamana' Case

A special court dismissed Shiv Sena (UBT) leaders Uddhav Thackeray and Sanjay Raut's appeal against a magistrate's order in a defamation case filed by Rahul Shewale. The court directed the case to proceed in trial court. The defamation charges relate to articles published in the newspaper 'Saamana'.

A special court on Monday dismissed the joint appeal of Shiv Sena (UBT) leaders Uddhav Thackeray and Sanjay Raut against a magistrate's order refusing to discharge them in a defamation case filed by former Lok Sabha MP Rahul Shewale.

Special judge for cases against MPs and MLAs, AU Kadam, directed that the case be sent to the trial (magistrate) court for further proceedings, denying their revision application.

Shewale, who is part of the Chief Minister Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena, has filed for action under Indian Penal Code section 500 (defamation) against Thackeray and Raut for allegedly publishing defamatory articles in the Marathi and Hindi editions of Shiv Sena (UBT) mouthpiece 'Saamana'. The articles, published on December 29, 2022, purportedly claimed Shewale had hotel and real estate businesses in Karachi, Pakistan.

(With inputs from agencies.)