Today, On 14th October, The Supreme Court extended the stay on a defamation case filed against Congress leader Shashi Tharoor for his 2018 remark, where he compared Prime Minister Narendra Modi to a “scorpion sitting on a Shivling.” The comment had sparked controversy, leading to legal action against Tharoor. The stay delays the proceedings, offering temporary relief to Tharoor.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Monday extended the stay on trial court proceedings against Congress MP Shashi Tharoor for an additional four weeks in a defamation case concerning his alleged “scorpion on Shivling” remark aimed at Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
A bench consisting of Justices Hrishikesh Roy and SVN Bhatti granted the Delhi police and the complainant four weeks to file their responses to Tharoor’s petition.
The bench directed,
“The interim order (of stay on the defamation proceedings) will continue,”
The counsel for the Delhi police argued that the key issue was whether BJP leader Rajiv Babbar, the complainant, qualified as an aggrieved party.
Previously, on September 10, the Supreme Court stayed the proceedings in the trial court. Tharoor approached the top court after the Delhi High Court, in its August 29 ruling, refused to quash the defamation case. He sought to overturn the trial court’s April 27, 2019, order summoning him as an accused in the criminal defamation complaint.
The defamation case against Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor stems from a controversial remark he allegedly made in November 2018 during the Bangalore Literature Festival.
At the event, Tharoor reportedly compared Prime Minister Narendra Modi to a “scorpion sitting on a Shivling,” a statement that sparked outrage among members of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and supporters of the Prime Minister.
The defamation complaint against Shashi Tharoor was filed in the trial court by BJP leader, who claimed that Tharoor’s remark had hurt his religious sentiments. The case stems from an October 2018 statement by Tharoor, where he alleged that an unnamed RSS leader had compared Prime Minister Narendra Modi to “a scorpion sitting on a Shivling.”
Tharoor described it as an “extraordinarily striking metaphor.”