Gujarat Court Convicts Journalist for Tweets, Articles Against Adani Group

Adani Enterprises, led by billionaire Gautam Adani, filed a lawsuit against journalist Ravi Nair in a district court in Gujarat in 2021, accusing him of making statements suggesting “political patronage… financial irregularities and unethical behavior,” according to a court order seen by Reuters on Tuesday.

In its decision, the court said, “No documents, official records or verified data have been submitted to prove the serious allegations made against the complaining company.”

Nair told Reuters he would appeal the decision but declined to comment further.

The Adani group did not immediately respond to Reuters’ request for comment.

The court decision stated that Nair’s lawyer argued that the posts were based on publicly available materials and constituted fair comment and criticism.

India is among the countries where criminal defamation is still part of the legal system and carries a maximum penalty of two years in prison.

The law has previously faced opposition from lawyers, journalists and activists; this includes an unsuccessful legal challenge before India’s supreme court in 2016.

Press freedom group the Committee to Protect Journalists said it was “deeply concerned” by the decision.

“We are following the situation closely,” it was said in X.