Gauhati HC dismisses Manish Sisodia's plea seeking quashing of proceedings criminal defamation case against him

GUWAHATI: Gauhati high court on Monday dismissed a petition by Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia seeking quashing of the proceedings of a criminal defamation case against him by Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma in a chief judicial magistrate’s court’s in the state.
Justice Kalyan Rai Surana dismissed Sisodia’s prayer for quashing Sarma’s case on the grounds that the Delhi deputy chief minister “has not been able to make out any case for quashing the lower court case.”
Sisodia now has to appear before the CJM’s court on November 19, state advocate general Devajit Saikia said.
Sarma in July last filed the defamation case in Kamrup district chief judicial magistrate’s court alleging that Sisodia in a press conference in New Delhi on June 4 accused him of indulging in corruption while supplying PPE kits in the state in 2020.
Sarma stated in the case that Sisodia accused him of giving a government contract to his wife’s company for purchasing PPE kits at a higher rate without a proper tender process. Sarma was the health minister at that time.
Advocate general Saikia said, “The high court, after hearing both the parties, quashed the petition of Manish Sisodia who had prayed before the court for quashing of the trial court proceedings against him. The court stated that the petition was baseless.”