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The Mumbai Sessions Court has stayed a lower court from proceeding against a criminal defamation suit filed by Tata Trusts Managing Trustee R Venkataramanan against ousted Tata Sons’ Chairman Cyrus Mistry. The Sessions Court has fixed the September 11 as the next date of hearing.
In June, Venkataramanan had moved Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, Mumbai, accusing Mistry of making false statements against him and sought ₹500 crore in damages.
While staying the lower court from proceeding further, the Sessions Court also called for all records and proceedings from the lower court.
Senior advocate Aabad Ponda, who represented Mistry in the suit, argued that R Venkatraman had deliberately suppressed the fact that the National Company Appellate Law Tribunal (NCLAT) had in its May 4 order admitted the appeal filed by the minority shareholders of Tata Sons in their petition alleging oppression and mismanagement at Tata Sons. Hence the matter was hence “sub-judice”.
The Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, Mumbai, had issued a summons to Mistry and other accused in the criminal defamation case. The process summons was issued against Mistry, Shapoor Mistry and directors of their company, Cyrus Investments and Sterling Investments, to be present before the Court on August 24.
Later in a statement, Mistry camp said it was not ‘intimidated’ by the defamation suit, even as it moved Mumbai Sessions Court against the summons.
“It is rather odd that a poor tactic like criminal defamation to muzzle litigation has been advised and adopted. We are not intimidated by these tactics ahead of the NCLAT hearing," Cyrus Mistry's office had said.
Mistry had earlier accused of “certain fraudulent transactions of Rs 22 crore" at AirAsia India and had alleged that Venkataramanan considered these transactions as "non-material" and "didn't encourage any further study" of it.
Venkataramanan is a shareholder and director of AirAsia India. Tata Trusts, the umbrella organisation for all Tata Group companies, holds 66 per cent stake in Tata Sons.
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