Day after adjourning defamation suit to 2046, HC modifies order; posts hearing in July 2026

A day after adjourning a defamation suit till 2046 after labelling it as an ''ego fight'' between the parties at the ''fag end of their lives'', the Bombay High Court on Wednesday modified its order and posted the matter for hearing in July this year. A bench of Justice Jitendra Jain had on Tuesday criticised the parties' persistence in litigation that prevented it from prioritising more urgent matters. The HC had noted that this was one of the matters where the ''ego fight'' between the parties at the fag end of their lives ''clogs the system'', preventing the court from taking up cases which require priority. On Wednesday, plaintiff Tarinibahen Desai's advocate Swaraj Jadhav moved an application before the court, urging it to expunge the remarks made against her in the order passed on Tuesday. Justice Jain accepted the request and ordered for deletion of the remarks, and also modified the next date of hearing from the year 2046 to July 15, 2026. Ninety-year-old Desai had filed a defamation suit in 2017 against one Kilkilraj Bhansali, stemming from a dispute within the Shyam Co-operative Housing Society in Mumbai. The core of the dispute involves notices, letters, and resolutions related to a 2015 annual general meeting, which included a resolution expelling Desai from the housing society. Desai sought Rs 20 crore as damages claiming that the communications of the society were defamatory, causing them mental harassment/distress. In 2018, the court was informed of a possibility of settlement. However, that did not go through, and the court framed the issues before proceeding with the civil trial. The HC noted in its Tuesday order that in the past hearings, the court had said the case could be worked out if parties tendered their unconditional apologies. However, Desai had insisted on pursuing the suit for defamation. Her lawyer Swaraj Jadhav on Wednesday told PTI that she was still keen on pursuing the suit.

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