Journalists Paranjoy Guha Thakurta and others have moved a Delhi court challenging a civil judge’s order restraining them from publishing or circulating allegedly unverified and defamatory content against the Adani group.

The journalists did not get any interim relief against the restraining order as Guha Thakurta’s appeal was listed before a district judge, Sunil Chaudhary, who was on leave on Wednesday.

The matter was assigned to another district judge, Rakesh Kumar Singh, who found no urgency and adjourned the matter for hearing before the roster judge concerned on September 18.

Judge Singh asked Guha Thakurta’s counsel whether anything would happen if he didn’t publish the article for one more day.

“Is it a matter of life and death? Would the client’s (Guha Thakurta) business
suffer?” Judge Singh asked.

Guha Thakurta’s lawyer had sought interim relief
and argued that the exact defamatory content published by him against Adani Enterprises Limited was not shown when the gag order
was passed.

Ayaskant Das, Ravi Nair and Abir Dasgupta were among the journalists who challenged the civil judge’s order.

On September 6, a senior civil judge of Rohini Court passed an ex-parte order directing the respondents to take down what the plaintiff had alleged to be defamatory content targeting its businesses. An ex-parte order is a decision given without hearing the opposite parties.

The ministry of information and broadcasting has asked 12 news outlets and independent journalists to comply with the court’s
order to take down alleged defamatory content against the Adani group.