Mumbai court sentences Sanjay Raut to 15 days in prison in defamation case

MUMBAI: A Metropolitan Magistrate in Mazgaon, Mumbai, on Thursday convicted Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut in a defamation case and sentenced him to 15 days of simple imprisonment. The court also imposed a fine of Rs 25,000 on him in a case filed by Medha Kirit Somaiya, wife of BJP leader Kirit Somaiya.

Raut was convicted under Section 500 of the Indian Penal Code, her advocate said. “Sanjay Raut has been sentenced to 15-day imprisonment; he has been taken into custody. A Rs 25,000 fine has been imposed on him. He will have to pay this sum to complainant Medha Somaiya”, BJP leader Kirit Somaiya told reporters.

In May 2022, BJP leader Kirit Somaiya’s wife Medha Kirit Somaiya had filed a Rs 100 crore defamation suit against Sanjay Raut in the Bombay High Court. Raut has accused Medha Kirit Somaiya and her husband of being allegedly involved in a Rs 100 crore scam in the construction of public toilets in the area under the jurisdiction of Mira-Bhayandar Municipal Corporation.

Medha Somaiya registered a complaint against Raut stating that the accused made malicious and unwarranted statements against the complainant in the media. “I state that the accused Sanjay Raut is Executive Editor of Marathi Newspaper ‘SAAMNA’ and is also the chief spokesman of Shivsena, a political party. I say that the accused around 16th April, 2022 and thereafter made malicious and unwarranted mischievous statements against me in the media, the same which was printed, published and circulated to the general public at large through electronic and print media. The said malicious statements were also viral on social media platforms”, she had said in her complaint. (ANI)