The Delhi High Court has issued summons to ANI over a man’s defamation complaint alleging that the agency carried his wife’s interview and a report in which she falsely accused him of giving her instant triple talaq for not giving birth to a male child, Bar and Bench reported.

Dr Danish Hashim, the petitioner, argued that the allegations made against him in 2021 are defamatory as he belongs to Islam’s Shia sect which does not recognise instant triple talaq as a form of divorce in the community. He said he was separated from his wife in 2020 but no legal divorce has taken place.

The court will next hear the matter on March 20. It has also issued notices to Hashim’s wife Huma, as well as their daughter.

In the interview carried by ANI in January 2021, Huma Hashim had claimed that she had been married to Danish Hashim for nearly 20 years but was given talaq after she failed to give birth to a son. She claimed that she was forced to undergo several abortions and that her husband had beaten her up too.

The petitioner claimed that the interview’s continued existence is causing him prejudice in his personal and professional life.

Danish Hashim had earlier filed a writ petition seeking directions to ANI and several other media houses to take down allegedly defamatory posts. However, last year, the plea was disposed of and he was granted liberty to file a civil suit.

This report was published with AI assistance.