Tarun Tejpal and Other Journalists to Pay 2 Crores as Compensation for Defamation to Retd. Army Officer

Major General MS Ahluwalia finally emerged victorious at the Delhi High Court in a defamation suit against journalists from the Tehelka magazine. Former editor-in-chief of Tehelka magazine, Tarun Tejpal along with Anirudh Behl and Mathew Samuel, have been ordered to pay compensation worth Rs. 2 crores to the retd. army officer.

The Basis of Defamation

Tehelka magazine’s Tarun Tejpal along with the two other journalists had conducted a sting operation on Mr. Ahluwalia in 2001 in which undercover journalists went to meet the officer as foreign players in the field of defence who were willing to introduce some developments in the Indian defence infrastructure. 

Tehelka then reported that the officer demanded a bribe of “₹10 lakh and a bottle of Blue Label whiskey”. Mr. Ahluwalia contended that all of these facts were false and that the story had been set up intentionally to malign his public reputation and respect in the Indian Army.

The Court’s Findings

The court’s reasoning behind imposing such a hefty fine is that the retd. army officer had already lived with shame and disrespect for 23 years. The sting operation tape has been manipulated and comments which were not material facts had been added by the journalists to spice up the story. It was indeed a false story put forth to the public.

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