Two decades after a defamation case was filed by VK Saxena, Medha Patkar was arrested on Friday for allegedly flouting court directions. The case, rooted in the Narmada Bachao Andolan era, takes a dramatic legal turn.
BY PC Bureau
New Delhi: Social activist Medha Patkar was arrested on Friday by Delhi Police in connection with a defamation case dating back to 2001, filed by the current Lieutenant Governor of Delhi, VK Saxena. A senior police official confirmed the arrest.
The development follows a non-bailable warrant issued against Patkar by a Delhi court on Wednesday. The court found that she had willfully failed to comply with the sentencing order, which required her to furnish probation bonds and pay a ₹1 lakh fine.
Patkar had been directed to appear before the court on Wednesday to fulfill these conditions. However, the court dismissed her request for an adjournment, calling it “frivolous,” “mischievous,” and a deliberate attempt to “hoodwink” the court.
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The court warned that her non-compliance could lead to a reconsideration of her lenient sentence. On April 8, a sessions court had granted her probation for good conduct, modifying an earlier magisterial court ruling from July 1, 2024. That earlier judgment had sentenced Patkar to five months of simple imprisonment and imposed a ₹1 lakh compensation to be paid to Saxena.
Activist Medha Patkar ARRESTED in Delhi in defamation case filed by Delhi LG VK Saxena
The arrest stems from legal action over her past allegations & comments against Saxena, including claims related to the Sardar Sarovar project#MedhaPatkar #VKSaxena #DefamationCase #Delhi pic.twitter.com/PSNXAKLnmH
— Ritam English (@english_ritam) April 25, 2025
Given her repeated failure to comply, the court took coercive action to secure her presence. Judge Singh ordered: “Issue non-bailable warrants against convict Medha Patkar through the office of the Commissioner of Police, Delhi Police, for the next hearing. Put up for report on NBWs and further proceedings on May 3.”
The judge also dismissed Patkar’s adjournment plea, which cited a pending revision petition in the Delhi High Court, stating, “The application has no substance. There is no direction in the Delhi High Court’s April 22 order that relieves her from complying with the sentencing order dated April 8. The application is frivolous, mischievous, and is only calculated to hoodwink the court.”
Background of the Case
The defamation case dates back to 2001, when VK Saxena, then the head of NGO National Council for Civil Liberties (NCCL) in Gujarat, filed a criminal complaint against Medha Patkar. The case stemmed from allegedly defamatory statements made by Patkar against Saxena and his organization during a heated public discourse over the Narmada Bachao Andolan, an anti-dam movement led by Patkar.
Saxena claimed that Patkar had made false and damaging accusations about his involvement in misappropriation of funds and interference with rehabilitation efforts linked to the Sardar Sarovar Dam project. He accused her of attempting to discredit him and obstruct the work of his NGO.
After years of legal proceedings, the trial court convicted Patkar in July 2024, sentencing her to imprisonment and a monetary penalty. The sessions court later granted her probation, but required her to submit legal bonds and pay the fine—terms she has repeatedly failed to meet, prompting Friday’s arrest.
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