In a big win for Padma Shri awardee monk Kartik Maharaj, the Calcutta High Court on Wednesday threw out a defamation case against him. The case stemmed from his sharp criticism of West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee over the new Lord Jagannath Temple in Digha, East Midnapore.
The court didn’t stop there. A division bench led by Justice Rajasekhar Mantha and Justice Ajay Kumar Gupta slapped a Rs 11,000 fine on Sabyasachi Dutta, a top Trinamool Congress leader and Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation chairman. Dutta had filed the suit, claiming Kartik Maharaj’s comments defamed the Chief Minister.
Kartik Maharaj, who serves with the Murshidabad unit of Bharat Sevashram Sangha, had openly questioned the temple inauguration. After hearing the case, the bench ruled it had no solid ground and called it a total waste of court time. They made Dutta pay up for dragging everyone into this unnecessary legal battle.
BJP state general secretary Jagannath Chattopadhyay cheered the verdict, saying it shows truth always wins. He added that this crushes any dirty attempts to smear the reputation of a respected Bharat Sevashram Sangha monk.
This isn’t the first clash. Since the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Trinamool Congress and Mamata Banerjee have repeatedly labeled Kartik Maharaj a secret BJP agent, even though he’s a monk. During recent riots in the minority-heavy Murshidabad district, the Chief Minister indirectly blamed him for stirring trouble—without naming him directly. Kartik Maharaj has strongly denied all these accusations every time.
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