'Kangana Ranaut¡¯s Plea For Defamation Case Transfer Devoid Of Merit', Javed Akhtar Tells Court

Veteran lyricist Javed Akhtar submitted in a court in Mumbai today that actor Kangana Ranaut's petition seeking transfer of the criminal defamation case filed by him against her was "devoid of any merits" and aimed at delaying proceedings.

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Ranaut had last month filed the petition before the chief metropolitan magistrate seeking transfer of hearing into the complaint to another court and said she had lost faith in magistrate¡¯s court as it indirectly threatened her of issuing a warrant of she failed to appear before it in a bailable offence.

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Javed Akhtar who has filed defamation case on her had sent a written reply filed through his lawyer Jay Bharadwaj. He said, ¡°The present transfer petition is devoid of all merits and is liable to be dismissed at the very threshold¡±.

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The same is only filed to delay the proceedings before the Andheri metropolitan magistrate¡¯s court (which is currently presiding over the case), he added. Further he said, ¡°The grounds mentioned in the present application were raised for the first time after more than seven months of summoning of the applicant (Ranaut) with the sole intent to delay the matter¡±.

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Javed Akhtar had filed his complaint in the court in November last year claiming that Kangana had made defamatory statements against him in a television interview which allegedly damaged his reputation.

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(With Inputs from PTI)