Q:I am employed in the South-eastern Railway. In December 1992, a disciplinary proceeding was instituted against me on allegations of misconduct. The Disciplinary Authority (DA) held against me and imposed certain punishments. The Appellate Authority (AA) dismissed my appeal in 1997. I challenged the orders of the DA and the AA before the central administrative tribunal (CAT), Calcutta. By its order, the tribunal quashed the chargesheet and the orders of both the DA and AA. However, I had to suffer humiliation and mental agony due to the charges brought against me by the management. Can I file a defamation suit against the DA and/or the management as well as for undue harassment claiming damages? Please advise.
S. Benari, Calcutta
A:A defamatory statement is one which exposes a person to hatred, contempt or ridicule or injures him in his profession, etc. or causes him to be shunned or avoided in the society. If such a statement is in writing, it is called libel and if made verbally, it is called slander. But no action for libel or slander lies for words written or spoken in the course of any judicial or quasi-judicial proceedings before any court, tribunal or other authority recognised by law. This is because such words or statements are absolutely privileged and even if such words or statements are written or spoken maliciously or without any justification, the same cannot form the basis of a defamation suit. However, the Calcutta high court has held that if a statement made in the course of a proceeding as mentioned above is wholly irrelevant to the issue involved, it may give rise to a valid cause of action for libel or slander.
In view of the aforesaid, it will be very difficult for you to maintain a suit of defamation on the basis of statements made by your employer in the course of the disciplinary proceeding. As regards your grievance for undue harassment, I am afraid the law does not appear to be in your favour. While a legal action claiming damages may lie for malicious prosecution, i.e. maliciously initiating criminal or quasi-criminal action which are ultimately dismissed as being meritless, no such legal action seems to be available in respect of similar proceedings of a civil nature which are ultimately dismissed.
In my view, the proceedings that you were subjected to were of a civil nature and no action for damages for harassment can be successfully maintained. The law of the land does not award damages for mental anxiety suffered by a person against whom a proceeding ultimately fails. Hence, in my view. any civil suit you may institute claiming damages for defamation or undue harassment/mental anxiety suffered by you is unlikely to succeed.
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