A Delhi court on Tuesday granted exemption from personal appearance to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and three others in a defamation complaint filed by BJP leader Rajiv Babbar.
However, the court asked Kejriwal, AAP leader Atishi, Rajya Sabha member Sushil Kumar Gupta, and MLA Manoj Kumar to appear before the court on June 7, the next date fixed for hearing.
Earlier on March 15, the court issued summons to Kejriwal and the others to appear before it on April 30.
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Advocate Mohd Irshad requested the court to grant exemption to all these political leaders as they are busy in political events in Delhi and Haryana.
The court was hearing the defamation case filed by Babbar, who has sought proceedings against Kejriwal and others for harming the reputation of the BJP by blaming the party for the deletion of names of ‘voters’ from the electoral rolls in Delhi.
“The statement of the accused (Kejriwal) was made with ulterior motives to degrade the reputation of the BJP to gain cheap political mileage in the upcoming elections,” Babbar said in his plea.
Babbar has alleged that Kejriwal has not only defamed the BJP but also all the people who are associated with the party.
Earlier on April 24, a Rouse Avenue court put a stay on the non-bailable warrant (NBW) issued against the AAP convener Kejriwal and his deputy Manish Sisodia in a 2013 defamation case.