A Delhi court on Wednesday issued a non-bailable warrant against Narmada Bachao Andolan leader Medha Patkar for flouting its order asking her to submit probation bonds and deposit Rs 1 lakh fine in a defamation case filed by Delhi LG V K Saxena.
Mr Saxena filed the case 23 years ago, when he headed an NGO in Gujarat.
Additional sessions judge Vishal Singh, who held the 70-year-old guilty in the defamation case, released her on probation of good conduct on April 8 while saddling her with a precondition of Rs 1 lakh fine.
On Wednesday, the matter was listed for Ms Patkar's appearance, furnishing of probation bonds and depositing the fine amount.
LG Saxena's counsel, advocate Gajinder Kumar, said Ms Patkar did not appear, nor did she comply with the court's directions.
"In today's matter, NBW (non bailable warrant) has been issued against Ms Patkar through the Commissioner of Delhi Police, and the court has noted that the application filed by the convict for seeking an adjournment is mischievous and frivolous," he said.
The lawyer added, "In case the convict does not comply with its order by the next date of hearing on May 3, then the court will consider altering the benevolent sentence passed on April 8." A detailed order is awaited.
Mr Saxena filed the case as the president of the National Council of Civil Liberties against Ms Patkar for her defamatory press release against Mr Saxena, issued on November 24, 2000.
On May 24, last year, a magisterial court observed Ms Patkar's statements calling Mr Saxena a "coward" and alleging his involvement in hawala transactions were not only defamatory per se but also crafted to incite negative perceptions about him.
Also, the accusation that the complainant was "mortgaging" the people of Gujarat and their resources to foreign interests was a direct attack on his integrity and public service, it added.
The arguments on sentencing were completed on May 30, following which the judgment on the quantum of sentence was reserved on June 7.
On July 1, the court sentenced her to five months' simple imprisonment, following which Ms Patkar filed an appeal in a sessions court.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
