India

Delhi Court Reissues Bailable Warrants for YouTuber Dhruv Rathee in 2018 Defamation Case

By Arnabjit Sur

A Delhi court on Saturday issued fresh bailable warrants against YouTuber and social media influencer Dhruv Rathee in an eight‑year‑old criminal defamation case. Judicial magistrate first class Rahul Jain of the Saket courts noted that earlier warrants had been issued at an incorrect address in Austria instead of Rathee’s Gurugram residence, rendering them ineffective. The court has scheduled a further hearing for November 23.

The complaint was filed by Vikas Sanskrityayan over a May 2018 video titled “BJP IT Cell Part II”, produced and published by Rathee on his YouTube channel. In the video, Rathee alleged that members of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s IT Cell had tried to bribe Sanskrityayan to defame him. Sanskrityayan claimed the allegations were false, malicious and intended to damage his reputation. The video gained wide attention after former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal shared it on social media. Kejriwal later admitted that sharing the video was a mistake, leading to separate proceedings against him, while the original complaint against Rathee continued before the Saket court.

Attempts to serve summons on Rathee have repeatedly failed, as he has largely been residing overseas. Notices were first issued on July 23, 2019, but the case remained pending due to difficulties ensuring his appearance. At the October 12 hearing, the court issued fresh summons after an urgent application by Sanskrityayan. Advocate Samaksh Sharma, the complainant’s counsel, informed the court that Rathee, who normally resides in Germany, was then in India to attend a Cockroach Janata Party protest. Sharma provided a Sector 56 address in Gurugram, Haryana, where Rathee was believed to be staying, and requested steps to ensure service of the summons.