Court takes cognisance of defamation plea against Tharoor for remark on PM

New Delhi: A Delhi court on Friday took cognisance of a criminal defamation complaint filed against Congress leader Shashi Tharoor for his alleged "scorpion" remark against Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Samar Vishal fixed December 22 for recording the statement of the complainant, Delhi BJP leader Rajeev Babbar. The complaint alleged that Tharoor, with "mala fide intention, made the statement which is not only abuse of the Hindu deity but also defamatory". 

In his complaint, Babbar said being a vice-president of the BJP's Delhi unit, he was "identified as a worker/supporter of Narendra Modi and BJP" and that Tharoor's statement hurt his religious sentiment. 

The complaint termed the statement "intolerable abuse" and "absolute vilification" of the faith of the people. 

Tharoor stoked a controversy last month while speaking at the Bangalore Literature Festival, claiming that an unnamed RSS leader had compared Modi to "a scorpion sitting on a Shivling". 

The complaint has been filed under sections 499 and 500 of IPC relating to defamation. If convicted, Tharoor may face a maximum punishment of two years in jail.