Reliance serves legal notice to Moneylife
Moneylife Digital Team 28 April 2014

Mukesh Ambani-led RIL has served legal notice to Moneylife for allegedly lowering the prestige of Reliance Industries among the conglomerate's friends and well-wishers

Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) has served a legal notice on Debashis Basu, editor and publisher of Moneylife, Moneywise Media Pvt Ltd and Sucheta Dalal, managing editor of Moneylife, for publishing articles "Congress gift to Reliance: RIL sole beneficiary of anti-dumping duty on PTA" () and "Ambani ki dukaan?"

 

The notice, sent by legal services firm Khaitan & Co also accuse Moneylife of "lowering the prestige of RIL among the conglomerate's friends and well-wishers".

 

The notice, while referring Ms Dalal, the managing editor of Moneylife as 'reporter', accuses her of "validating highly objectionable parts from the book "Gas Wars - Crony Capitalism and the Ambanis" in her article 'Ambani ki dukaan?'. Interestingly, the notice referes to the book as 'Pamphlet' at all places, including notices sent to the writers and publishers of the book.

 

"...you have entered into a deliberate attempt to slander our client's name and reputation by publicizing a highly-objectionable Pamphlet titled "Gas Wars - Crony Capitalism and the Ambani's dukan" by one Paranjoy Guha Thakurta alongwith Subir Ghosh and Jyotirmoy Chaudhuri written, published and distributed with the explicit purpose of making slanderous and baseless allegations against our client (Pamphlet) by validating its highly-objectionable parts in your piece 'Ambani ki dukaan?' on 14 April 2014 at 4.01pm and repeated the injury to our client in the 1 May 2014 edition of Moneylife on pages 16 and 17. In this article you have mixed the wholly unrelated issue of PTA described in para 1-15 of this legal notice with the machinations and the slander inherent in the said Pamphlet. Our clients reserve the right to include for colluding with the said authors of the Pamphlet for the same as the distributor of their canards," the notice from Khaitan & Co says.

 

Last week, the same lawyer firm issued notices to the authors and distributors of the book "Gas Wars - Crony Capitalism and the Ambanis". The notices also accuse e-distributors of the book, Authors Upfront and Feel Books Pvt Ltd as well as Flipkart and Amazon of being party to a "common conspiracy" to "ensure the defamation of our clients for personal gains". Also included among those served notice is Deepshikha Shankar, event manager for the Foundation of Media Professionals, who had in her personal capacity forwarded the e-invite for the book release function to several people, says a report from Times of India.

 

Over the past two years, Reliance has been the target of attacks by Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders Arvind Kejriwal and Prashant Bhushan, but they have never been served any legal notice.

 

In fact, TV news channels, owned by the RIL group itself broadcast the press conferences of Kejriwal and Bhushan LIVE several times, in which the latter have made serious allegations about Reliance. “I find it quite perplexing. If you felt that you have been defamed by what Prashant Bhushan and I said, then we are the real culprits and, if you had to send a defamation notice, it should have been to us. The TV channels merely broadcast what we said,” Kejriwal was quoted as saying in a English translation of the letter posted on the AAP website. Its not clear whether large media groups like TV18, in which RIL has substantial interest, have also received any such notice, since their TV channels had also carried the press conferences of Kejriwal.

 

Earlier in February this year, Kejriwal, while speaking at a rally, repeatedly cited two bank account numbers claiming that they belonged to Ambani brothers, Mukesh and Anil. This was done as part of challenging Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)'s prime ministerial candidate Narendra Modi to get black money back from Swiss banks.

 

However, all the Mukesh Ambani-led conglomerate did was issue a press release refuting the allegations made by Kejriwal, blaming it on mythical ‘vested interests’. "It is being reiterated that neither Reliance Industries nor Mr Mukesh Ambani have or had any illegitimate accounts anywhere in the world. The continued tirade of baseless allegations being made by AAP against us appears to be instigated by vested interests," the company had said. (Reliance refutes Kejriwal's allegations terming it as 'baseless')

 

Seperately, EAS Sarma, former secretary of the Government of India (GoI), had demanded an independent investigation into the whole gamut of showering one largesse after another on RIL that would unravel the hidden links in this web of improprieties. (Set up SIT to investigate showering of one largesse after another on RIL, says Sarma )

 

The former secretary had written several letters to the PM and petroleum ministry on the improprieties committed by the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government in dealing with RIL’s gas project in Krishna Godavari (KG) Basin in Andhra Pradesh.

 

Last week, Gopalkrishna Gandhi, former governor of West Bengal, called Reliance Industries as 'parallel state', which exercised power brazenly over natural and financial resources, says a report from Times of India. Quoting Mr Gandhi, the report says, "We used to talk of black money as a parallel economy and so it continues to be. But Reliance is a parallel State. I do not know of any country where one single firm exercises such power so brazenly, over the natural resources, financial resources, professional resources and, ultimately, over human resources as the company of the Ambanis". The former governor was speaking at the 15th DP Kohli Memorial Lecture that had over 3,000 officials from the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the audience.

 

From what we know, none of these parties have been served legal notice by Reliance Industries.

Comments
TrueView
1 decade ago
Thank you for your existence, Thank you that you are still there. Please continue in the same vein and with the same fearless spirit!

Your predictions regarding Mukesh Ambani trying to control Indian media unfortunately came true. We Indians more than ever need Debashis Basu, editor, publisher of Moneylife, Moneywise Media Pvt Ltd and Sucheta Dalal and its dedicated and fearless employees.

An idea:
if you can please do video reporting over some special topics like "Indian media Freedom: The end is near?", "Indian pollution and heath: grave danger" , "Indian culture or Bad people: who is responsible for rapes" etc.
Dr Paresh Vaidya
1 decade ago
Is there something in Law that permits a Book to criticize someone within some boundaries but a pamphlet can not? The use of word 'pamphlet' for a book needs to be understood before it begins to operate legally.
Does the notice to Authors also uses the word Pamphlet?
MG Warrier
1 decade ago
Copied below is an excerpt from my article on corruption published here in July 2012:
"India has an array of politicians, statesmen, businessmen and bureaucrats who do not face corruption charges. These eminent individuals have a moral responsibility to help the country pull out of the present crisis. UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi had exhorted for ‘zero tolerance’ to corruption while addressing congressmen in Allahabad sometime back. Her vision did not find takers even among her followers inasmuch as the government guided by her failed to take steps to ensure that at least people facing huge corruption charges did not hold public offices. While convalescing in the United States last year, Sonia Gandhi once again remembered the need to tackle corruption and on return to India promptly requested her party to do something about it.
Going by dictionary meaning, the word corruption is associated with words like bribe, cheating, evil, badness, decayed, stinking, decayed, false, defilement, wickedness, violation, defective, spoilt, faulty, wrong, malignant, offensive, immoral, unchaste, vile and fallen (the list can go on). Suffice to say, anyone or any institution/organization having something attributable to any formations out of any of these words can be alleged to be corrupt. Luckily not so. It is generally accepted that what is legal is not corrupt. Then, like morality, the perception of corruption varies from individual to individual, society to society and country to country. Meaning, what is construed as legal in one context need not be so in another context.
For the rich and the powerful, there will always be legal remedies, as, historically, the laws are made and interpreted in their favor. No wonder, while really corrupt people take shelter under legal interpretations and the age-old protection available to those facing allegations to the effect that until proved guilty, the benefit of doubt would go in favor of the accused, eminent statesmen and innocent common man get dragged into controversies related to corruption, day in and day out, despite their efforts to maintain high moral and ethical standards in their own lives. In the deluge of corruption that the world is witnessing today, no Krishna will be able to float on a leaf unaffected by the deluge. The value system which is in disrepair globally needs a shock treatment. The initiative can come from India, if the nation decides to make every embarrassment an opportunity to correct and move forward. This can be done only by handling individual corruption cases on the basis of the facts of the case and not with reference to the impact such action will have on coalition government’s equilibrium or the immediate inconvenience or discomfort some individuals will face."
RUSHABH R SHAH
1 decade ago
I think ML should not stop its relentless efforts against those who have been responsible for large scale political and bureaucratic corruption and we as ordinary and law abiding citizens should declare our unconditional support to ML. Truth should prevail under any circumstances.
JOSEPH KORAH
1 decade ago
Money Life Foundation must give a fitting response to this kind of arrogance of the Industrialists. We as people can do our bit to boycott the products and services of such companies who are trying to muzzle down fair reporting. Our prayers and best wishes to Money Life Foundation and its founders to get over these problems and you will surely succeed.
Indur Chhugani
1 decade ago
Sucheta - There is no need to worry - However corrupt may the Judges be - Reliance had also threatened me with defamation case in 1999 - On account of one of my Ads in which I had mentioned Reliance - Nothing happened. Had written back - Please go ahead and file case against me.
Harish Kohli
1 decade ago
I have no comment to make at the present but wish to read what other people feel. But I cannot tick the "Alert me ...." box unless I make a comment. Why?
Indur Chhugani
1 decade ago
- At the slightest dissent from any person writing against the Judges or courts - the Judges file Contempt case - BUT I have sent mails to the concerned Judges and High Court and Supreme Court - tempting them to initiate contempt proceedings against me - BUT they refuse - Perhaps apprehensive, this case of my eviction from flat at age 66 - Will reach all across the country -.
.
What use are 2 Judges together – IF both are having extremely low IQ level ? – Just one with human intelligence would be better

http://ikchhugani.wordpress.com/?p=8
Indur Chhugani
1 decade ago
High Court Judges and Supreme Court Judges travel in pockets of criminals - Mukesh Ambani is definitely one of the topmost in India.
SuchindranathAiyerS
1 decade ago
My personal experience with the High Court of Karnataka shows how the Courts bend or even completely ignore laid down laws and procedures to favour the wealthy and influential in a defamation case that I had filed against several VIPs and which was cognized. The High Court granted a stay before the Magistrate could receive and weigh evidence on both side, directly accepted averments and fabricated documents from the VIPs as evidence and proclaimed in open court that what cannot be considered to be more serious than "littering" to be "vandalism" and declared that the evidence of defamation produced by me to the Magistrate does not constitute a crime on the basis of inadmissible "evidence"! I wish Moneylife all the best, but in the prevalent state of the Indian judicial system, I would urge great care and caution.
Indur Chhugani
Replied to SuchindranathAiyerS comment 1 decade ago
- At the slightest dissent from any person writing against the Judges or courts - the Judges file Contempt case - BUT I have sent mails to the concerned Judges and High Court and Supreme Court - tempting them to initiate contempt proceedings against me - BUT they refuse - Perhaps apprehensive, this case of my eviction from flat at age 66 - Will reach all across the country -.
.
What use are 2 Judges together – IF both are having extremely low IQ level ? – Just one with human intelligence would be better

http://ikchhugani.wordpress.com/?p=8
SuchindranathAiyerS
Replied to SuchindranathAiyerS comment 1 decade ago
The memory of the pillorying of the Kanchi Shankaracharya by the Kanchi Magistrate and the High Court of Madras on false (non) evidence is fresh in recent memory! As well as the Supreme Court refusing to give the Chief of Army Staff a fair hearing. I wish Moneylife all the best, but in the prevalent state of the Indian judicial system, I would urge great care and caution.
Dolphy Dsouza
1 decade ago
Surely, Gopalkrishna Gandhi's comment on Reliance as a parallel state holds true. All is money power. It appears there is some truth in the allegations, otherwise Reliance with all its resources would have refuted the charges. Now they are baring their fangs to threaten and browbeat even if you ask the correct questions. Reliance does it all the times. It is truly democracy in which the Reliance control the government. Does it need another revolution?

Dolphy
Bidyut Chatterjee
1 decade ago
I have serious doubts about the honesty and integrity of the Ambanis and in fact they are the most dishonest business house this country has ever seen. They squeeze the poor of the little money they have and thus enrich themselves. Build luxury mansions worth tens of thousands of crores. These are the guys who are responsible for the rise in NPA of the Banks. Real jokes who are sucking the people of this country dry. Someone must be helping them. I am sure the people of the country know.
krishna
1 decade ago
We are 99 %, the notice has come from 1 % camp. It is an assault of money power on truth. Truth hurts 1 % class the most. Occupy Wall Street movement and its myriad incarnations have a long way to go.
krishna
1 decade ago
We are 99 %, the notice has come from 1 % camp. It is an assault of money power on truth. Truth hurts 1 % class the most. Occupy Wall Street movement and its myriad incarnations have a long way to go.
krishna
1 decade ago
We are 99 %, the notice has come from 1 % camp. It is an assault money power on truth. Truth hurts 1 % class the most. Occupy Wall Street movement and its myriad incarnations have a long way to go.
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