A Delhi court has acquitted Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena in a criminal defamation case filed by activist Medha Patkar over a 2000 newspaper advertisement. The Saket court said a detailed judgment will be issued later, bringing the two-decade-long case to a close.
New Delhi: A Delhi court on Thursday acquitted Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena in a nearly 20-year-old criminal defamation case filed against him by Medha Patkar, a well-known activist associated with the Narmada Bachao Andolan.
The order was passed by Judicial Magistrate First Class (JMFC) Raghav Sharma of the Saket Court in New Delhi. The court pronounced the verdict on Thursday, while noting that a detailed judgment explaining the reasons for acquittal will be released later.
The case dates back to the year 2000 and arose out of a public advertisement published on November 10, 2000, in The Indian Express. The advertisement was issued by the National Council for Civil Liberties (NCCL), an organisation headed at that time by VK Saxena.
The advertisement supported the construction of the Sardar Sarovar Dam in Gujarat, a project that was strongly opposed by Medha Patkar and the Narmada Bachao Andolan. The advertisement was titled
“True face of Ms Medha Patkar and her Narmada Bachao Andolan”.
Medha Patkar had objected to the contents of the advertisement and responded by issuing a press note. She later filed a criminal defamation complaint against Saxena, alleging that the advertisement harmed her reputation and that of the movement. This complaint, however, was dismissed by the Saket court on Thursday, resulting in Saxena’s acquittal.
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Advocate Sridevi Panikkar appeared on behalf of Medha Patkar during the proceedings. VK Saxena was represented by a legal team comprising advocates Gajinder Kumar, Kiran Jai, Chandra Shekhar, Drishti and Somya.
The long-running legal dispute between the two parties had multiple cases arising from the same controversy. Interestingly, VK Saxena had also filed a separate criminal defamation case against Medha Patkar over the press note issued by her in response to the 2000 advertisement.
In that case, the trial court had convicted Patkar for criminal defamation. The conviction was later upheld by the Supreme Court of India, which agreed with the findings of the lower courts. However, while sustaining the conviction, the apex court set aside the penalty of ₹1 lakh that had been imposed on Patkar.
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It is also noteworthy that on January 24, 2026, a trial court had acquitted Medha Patkar in another defamation case filed by VK Saxena, adding another chapter to the long-standing legal battle between the two.
With Thursday’s verdict, the defamation case filed by Medha Patkar against VK Saxena has finally come to an end after more than two decades, with the court ruling in favour of the Delhi Lieutenant Governor.
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