MJ Akbar, former union minister, loses defamation case filed against journalist Priya Ramani

A Delhi court acquitted journalist Priya Ramani in a criminal defamation case filed by former Union Minister MJ Akbar against her, reports ANI. The trial has been underway for close to two years after Ramani made allegations of sexual misconduct against Akbar in the wake of #MeToo movement. These allegations forced Akbar, who is also a former journalist, to resign from the Union Cabinet.

The Delhi Court on Wednesday said, “Woman has right to put her grievance even after decades.”

In an article written for the Vogue in 2017, Ramani had alleged that a former boss had sexually assaulted her during her job interview for his publication.

“Everyone said you had transformed Indian journalism and I wanted to be on your team. So, we set a time you could interview me at the plush south Mumbai hotel where you always stayed,” she wrote, adding that the man made her feel very uncomfortable through the course of the interview and also behaved inappropriately. 

“It was more date, less interview. You offered me a drink from the mini bar (I refused, you drank vodka), we sat on a small table for two that overlooked the Queen’s Necklace (how romantic!) and you sang me old Hindi songs after inquiring after my musical preferences. You thought you were irresistible. The bed, a scary interview accompaniment, was already turned down for the night. Come sit here, you said at one point, gesturing to a tiny space near you. I’m fine, I replied with a strained smile. I escaped that night, you hired me, I worked for you for many months even though I swore I would never be in a room alone with you again,” she wrote. 

In 2018, almost a year after the the article was published and when the #MeToo movement was sweeping India, Ramani took to social media to allege that former boss that she was referring to was MJ Akbar and the allegations dated back to when the minister was an editor at The Asian Age. She worked with the newspaper for nearly 10 months in 1994. 

Following the social media post by Ramani, Akbar filed a criminal defamation case, asserting that the article and the subsequent tweet about him caused damage to his “stellar reputation”. In the meantime, several women accused him of sexual assault and harassment, forcing him to step down as a minister in the central government. 

Two months after his resignation, Akbar was also suspended from the Editors Guild of India. In May 2019, the trial began at the Rouse Avenue Court.