Citing 'Defamation', Maha Legislative Council Panel Recommends Five Days’ Jail for Four Scribes: Report

New Delhi: A privilege committee of the Maharashtra Legislative Council recommended a five-day jail sentence for four journalists for defaming Amol Mitkari, a member of the Council from the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), for publishing “false and fabricated news” against him, according to a report by the Indian Express.

Mitkari had filed a breach of privilege motion against the five journalists: four based in Akola – Ganesh Sonawane, Harshada Sonawane, Amol Nandurkar and Ankush Gawande – and Satish Deshmukh, the editor of YouTube channel Satya Ladha.

The Special Privileges Committee conducted an inquiry into the complaint and concluded that Ganesh and Harshada Sonawane, Nandurkar and Gawande were responsible for broadcasting defamatory and misleading material to tarnish Mitkari’s public image, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLC member Prasad Lad, who is also the chairman of the committee, said.

The committee, however, did not recommend any action against Deshmukh, as it said that he had submitted a written apology, according to Lad. 

The panel has proposed that the four journalists be sentenced to five days of imprisonment. It suggested that the four journalists be punished during the ongoing winter session of the state legislature, or, during the next session.

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