National Alliance of People's Movements

Many of you may have come across some defamatory news against Medha Patkar in certain newspapers and channels by Mr V.K. Saxena of ‘National Council for Civil Liberties’, Ahmedabad with respect to certain legal cases pending before the Metropolitan Magistrate of Delhi. We wish to bring to the kind attention and knowledge of you all that such news is either one-sided and unfounded or frivolous and in most cases totally unverified. The matter which has not been adjudicated and is only in the form of a petition placed before the Court is also made a ‘news’, only with an intention of defaming Medhaji and Narmada Bachao Andolan.

Since yesterday, Mr. Saxena has been circulating news reports on “False medical certificate produced by Medha Patkar before the Magistrate’s court and notice having been issued to her for the same”. In fact, the certificate is not at all fake and when he challenged it through an application, she was present in person in the Court, along with her counsel and told the Magistrate that she would file the Reply on the frivolous application, but the main petition of alleged defamation by her must progress and the charges must be framed. Agreeing to the request, the Magistrate fixed 31st of March as the next date of hearing. The allegation of false certificate is thus not at all adjudicated, there was no hearing on the issue and no order is as yet issued by the Magistrate’s Court.

Mr. Saxena in the name of his organization had earlier issued paid advisements against us on false grounds since 2000 which is what the defamation case filed against him by us is about. However, he went to the Supreme Court in 2007 alleging us of everything including illegal foreign funding to stalling development as ‘sedition’. But the Supreme Court upheld NBA’s case and integrity and Mr. Saxena lost the case. In fact, the Supreme Court’s Judgement in the case filed against us concluded Mr. Saxena’s litigation as “private-interest litigation” and directed him to pay the costs.

He also filed such vexatious petitions against prominent danseuse and activist Mallika Sarabhai and acclaimed sociologist Ashish Nandi, which was also struck down by the Courts.

Mr. Saxena was also one of the persons involved in the physical attack on Medhaji that took place in the Sabarmati Ashram in 2002 after the Gujarat riots and in fact seems to be indirectly pushing ahead the agenda of state politics and administration that is no more in a position to defend the Sardar Sarovar Project whose benefit- costs situation is entirely in doldrums today.

Kindly do not be misled by this news which is being planted by Mr. Saxena in a deliberated and ill-intended manner. We are always available to clarify the facts and place the truth in public domain.

Ashish Mandloi
(07290-222464)

Madhuresh
(09818905316)

Shrikanth
(917914973)

Kamla Yadav