#Defamation Case filed by police officer : SC dismisses plea by Rajdeep Sardesai & 7 other journalists [Read the Judgment]

The Supreme Court has dismissed a criminal appeal filed by a senior journalist Rajdeep Sardesai challenging the summons issued to him by the Additional Metropolitan Sessions Judge, Nampally in a case filed under Sections 499 and 500 read with 120B of the IPC for allegedly making false implication against a senior officer of Hyderabad police in connection. The Supreme Court has dismissed a criminal appeal filed by a senior journalist Rajdeep Sardesai challenging the summons issued to him by the Additional Metropolitan Sessions Judge, Nampally in a case filed under Sections 499 and 500 read with 120B of the IPC for allegedly making false implication against a senior officer of Hyderabad police in connection with Sohrabuddin encounter case in 2007. The state Government, acting on the representation accorded sanction for prosecution, permitting Rajiv Trivedi to file complaints against the appellants through the State Public Prosecutor before the appropriate court of law against Rajdeep Sardesai and the other individuals connected with electronic and print media against whom Trivedi had sought sanction for prosecution. Therefore, in the case on hand, when the previous sanction was accorded by the State Government against those who were responsible for the telecast/publication of the news both in electronic and print media which according to the second respondent damaged his reputation, it is not necessary for the State Government to separately issue sanction order against each one of the appellants, when they are all responsible for telecasting and publishing the said news item in the electronic and print media and also when the names of the said electronic and print media have already been mentioned in the said sanction order.” "We are of the opinion that the impugned judgement passed by the High Court of Andhra Pradesh in rejecting the petitions for quashing the initiation of criminal proceedings against the appellants under Section 482 of the Cr PC is perfectly legal and valid.