The trial court proceedings in a defamation case filed by BJP leader Tajinder Pal Singh Bagga against journalist Swati Chaturvedi have been stayed until July 17. The Delhi High Court issued an order to this effect after the journalist approached the court challenging the trial court summons, Live Law reported.

The case pertains to the journalist’s tweet following Bagga’s appointment as the BJP spokesperson in 2017. “Now the man who beat up @pbhushan1 was arrested in a sexual harassment case speaks for @BJP4India. Good job,” she had tweeted.

The BJP leader had subsequently filed a defamation case against Chaturvedi. In 2018, a magistrate court asked the journalist to appear before the court. And her appeal against this order was dismissed in December last year. Judge Sudhir Kumar Sirohi had said that Chaturvedi's tweet about alleged sexual harassment “lowered the image of public figure, that too when he was representing a national party”.

Bagga’s lawyer argued that the journalist’s petition lacks merit and the leader has never been arrested in any sexual harassment case.

The High Court has issued a notice and will now hear the matter on July 17.