In a recent legal development, the Madras High Court has dismissed an appeal filed by Zee Media Corporation Limited challenging a single judge's order that directed the company to respond to specific interrogatories raised by cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni in a defamation suit. Dhoni had filed the defamation suit, seeking ₹100 crore in damages, alleging that his name was wrongly implicated in the IPL betting scam.
The division bench, consisting of Justices R. Mahadevan and Mohammed Shaffiq, has upheld the single judge's order, directing Zee Media Corporation Limited to answer the 17 interrogatories raised by Dhoni within a period of 10 days. The court found that there was a reasonable connection between the interrogatories and the pending civil suit, and therefore, the appellant was obligated to respond to them.
The judges concurred with Senior Counsel P.R. Raman, who represented Dhoni, that Zee Media had failed to establish any grounds for interference with the well-considered order issued by the single judge on November 11, 2022. Dhoni had originally filed the defamation suit in 2014 against Zee Media Corporation, journalist Sudhir Chaudhary, and Indian Police Service officer G. Sampath Kumar.
In response to the suit, Zee Media Corporation recently filed a written statement, which Dhoni deemed vague and insufficient in addressing the specific allegations made against him. Consequently, Dhoni sought the court's permission to deliver 17 interrogatories to Zee Media Corporation and requested the court to issue summons compelling the company to provide evidence.
Interrogatories, as governed by Section 30 and Order XI, Rules 1 to 11, 21, and 22 of the CPC, are formal written questions administered by parties to the opposing party with the court's permission. They serve the purpose of eliciting information, clarifying the case, and ascertaining the truth in a fair and just manner.
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