Delhi High Court suggests CJP leaders remove posts in Gaurav Bhatia defamation suit

The Delhi High Court on Thursday suggested that Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) leaders Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka voluntarily remove social media posts targeting BJP national spokesperson and senior advocate Gaurav Bhatia. In response to the court's suggestion, Das and Ranka undertook to delete the content within 24 hours. The legal dispute stems from a defamation suit filed by Bhatia, which includes a claim for two crore rupees. The suit concerns an AI generated image shared by Das and Ranka on September 5 that allegedly attributed statements to Bhatia calling Swatantra Bhardwaj a dimaagi naxali and jaatiwaadi. Justice Tushar Rao Gedela observed that while young people have a right to express themselves, attacking others without verification is not correct and that expressions should be put in a more articulate manner. The court declined to grant a dynamic injunction to restrain the defendants from posting further content but directed Meta and X to take down identical posts in the future if flagged by Bhatia. The court also issued summons to Das, Ranka, and CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke. During the proceedings, the court noted that Bhatia could have explored resolving the matter amicably instead of filing a case, a proposal Bhatia declined. Following the hearing, Das stated on X that the deletion was voluntary to avoid spending time in court, while Bhatia responded to the development on X with the phrase: No comments.