Lipika Mitra missed a Delhi court hearing in her defamation case against Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. The judge imposed a Rs 5,000 fine and gave a final chance to respond by August 2.
New Delhi: Today, on July 16, a Delhi court has fined Lipika Mitra, wife of former Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MLA Somnath Bharti, Rs 5,000 for not attending a hearing related to her criminal defamation case against Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.
The hearing was scheduled on Wednesday, July 16, 2025, but Mitra failed to appear either in person or through video conferencing.
The matter came up before Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Paras Dalal, who observed the absence of the complainant.
He stated,
“None is present on behalf of the complainant side, and even none appeared on behalf of the complainant side through video-conferencing (VC).”
The court emphasized that the date and time of the hearing had been previously fixed after taking into account the convenience of both the complainant and the accused.
The judge remarked,
“In view of non-appearance, a cost of Rs 5,000 is imposed on the complainant (Mitra) to be deposited with the Central Delhi Court Bar Association.”
This fine was imposed as a last warning, with the judge granting one final chance to Lipika Mitra to file her response and present her arguments. The next date of hearing has been set for August 2, 2025.
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Lipika Mitra had filed a criminal defamation complaint against Nirmala Sitharaman, alleging that the Finance Minister made
“defamatory, false, and malicious statements”
during a press conference held on May 17, 2024.
According to the complaint, these statements were made deliberately to damage the image of her husband, Somnath Bharti, and to reduce his chances of winning in the 2024 general elections.
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The complaint also accuses Sitharaman of making remarks concerning the couple’s past marital issues but allegedly not disclosing that the two had reunited and were now living together peacefully.
It claims that the statements were made
“solely with an intent to hurt the complainant and her husband”
and were politically motivated to benefit the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate running against Bharti.
Advocates Zoheb Hossain, Sanjeev Menon, Pranjal Tripathi and Ilma Khan appeared for Sitharaman.
Case Title:
Lipika Mitra v. Nirmala Sitharaman
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