MUMBAI: The Bombay High Court dismissed actress Kangana Ranaut’s petition seeking a stay on the criminal defamation case filed against her by lyricist Javed Akhtar in 2020. She also requested to club the case with a counter-complaint she filed later.
Justice Prakash Naik ruled that the proceedings cannot be halted or combined as Ranaut never argued the cases were interconnected. Additionally, Akhtar’s complaint preceded hers.
Ranaut argued that both cases stemmed from a 2016 meeting and should be tried together. However, Akhtar opposed the petition, highlighting Ranaut’s previous unsuccessful legal challenges and claiming her counter-complaint contained fabricated allegations.
Akhtar’s complaint, filed in November 2020, accuses Ranaut of defaming him by linking him to actor Sushant Singh Rajput’s death. Ranaut faces trial under defamation charges.
In 2021, Ranaut countersued Akhtar for criminal intimidation and insult to modesty stemming from the 2016 incident. While a Mumbai court issued summons to Akhtar, his challenge in the sessions court led to a stay on these proceedings. However, Akhtar’s defamation case against Ranaut continues.
