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Anna Hazare sentenced to 3-month jail term in defamation case

Eminent social worker Anna Hazare was today sentenced to three months simple imprisonment in a defamation suit filed by Maharashtra Minister Babanrao Gholap, but Additional Metropolitan Magistrate C Holambe-Patil offered a release bond which the accused refused.

Judge Holambe-Patil, in his judgment, said Hazare being a social worker of eminence, should get a two-year release bond of Rs 5,000 on the condition that he should not make further allegations against the petitioner. However, Hazare refused to furnish a bond and hence was taken into custody.

Hazare had accused Social Welfare Minister Gholap of corruption and had said that even the Anti-Corruption Bureau had found him (Gholap) guilty, in an interview in the Marathi newspaper Navakal.He tried to prove his case by producing documents which were not acceptable to the court.

During the hearing, all the three parties -- Gholap, Hazare and editor of Navakal, Jayashree Khadilkar -- were present. The court released the editor of Navakal with a warning that reasonable care and caution should be taken in the future by the newspaper before publishing any charges against persons.

Hazare had accused Gholap of corruption in the purchase of powerlooms through the Vasantrao Naik Corporation under his ministry, and based his allegations on the report of the ACB of 1995, in an interview with Navakal in September 1997.

The court observed that the report mentioned some irregularities against some officers and did not reveal anything else and Hazare should have verified the facts of the matter. Hence, under Section 499 of the Indian Penal Court, Hazare committed an offence of defamation. However, the section also offers ten exceptions which do not cover Hazare.

UNI

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