A senior IPS officer from the Haryana government has filed a defamation lawsuit against an additional district and sessions judge, seeking ₹1 crore in damages. The case stems from negative remarks made against the officer in a judicial order issued in February 2022, officials have reported. The defamation suit was submitted to a court in Gurugram on Monday, and a hearing was held the same day.
According to the officer’s legal team, the judge’s comments were unwarranted and unrelated to the actual matter under adjudication, which was a bail application. The court documents, made public on Wednesday, indicate that the lawsuit was accepted, and the case has been scheduled for a hearing on November 21, during which the court will consider the question of whether the suit is maintainable. Additionally, the officer has sought a permanent injunction to prevent the judge from making further defamatory remarks, along with monetary compensation.
The legal dispute arose from a bail hearing for another IPS officer involved in a multi-crore heist in Gurugram. During the February 2022 hearing, the judge had raised concerns about the plaintiff’s oversight and management as a senior officer in the Gurugram police. Specifically, the judge criticized the decision to assign dual responsibilities to the deputy commissioner of police (DCP), who was implicated in the bribery case.
The judge questioned how the DCP, whose office was near that of the senior officer, could meet with gangsters and the main perpetrators of the heist without the senior officer being aware. These critical remarks were included in the bail order and subsequently reported in the media.
The heist case in question involved the DCP allegedly accepting a ₹2.5 crore bribe in his office at the Gurugram police commissionerate. An FIR was filed under various sections of the Indian Penal Code in Kherki Daula police station on August 21, 2021. The DCP’s previous bail applications were rejected twice, and his third request for anticipatory bail was denied on February 14, 2022, when the judge’s critical comments were issued.
Following the media coverage of these remarks, the senior IPS officer, facing public scrutiny, approached the Punjab and Haryana High Court. In August 2023, the high court ruled in favor of the officer, ordering the remarks to be expunged. The court concluded that the IPS officer had not been provided an opportunity to respond to the criticisms and that there was insufficient evidence to support the judge’s statements. The court order emphasized that the comments were made without proper justification or material evidence.
In his defamation case, the officer argues that the judge’s remarks were speculative and lacked a judicial foundation. He contended that the comments about his alleged lack of awareness were personal and unrelated to the bail case. The officer also asserted that the remarks were not covered by the Judges Protection Act, as they did not pertain to the judge’s official duties.
