Daijiworld Media Network – Bathinda

Bathinda, Sep 30: A local court here has ordered Bollywood actor and MP Kangana Ranaut to appear in person on October 27 in a defamation case, rejecting her request to attend the proceedings via video-conferencing.

The case dates back to the 2020–21 farmer protests when Kangana allegedly retweeted a post with her own comment about 73-year-old Mahinder Kaur of Bahadurgarh Jandian village, Bathinda, mistaking her for Bilkis Bano of Shaheen Bagh.

During Monday’s hearing, Ranaut’s counsel sought exemption from personal appearance, but the court refused. Advocate Raghubir Singh Beniwal, representing the complainant, said, “We opposed Kangana Ranaut’s application because the law does not provide for an accused to be exempted at the initial stage. We requested the court to ensure her presence and, if absent, to issue arrest warrants.”

Mahinder Kaur’s complaint stated that the BJP MP from Mandi, Himachal Pradesh, made “false imputations and remarks” in her retweet, comparing her to the Shaheen Bagh protester.

Earlier, the Punjab and Haryana High Court had dismissed Kangana’s plea to quash the case, prompting her to move the Supreme Court. However, on September 12, the apex court observed it was “not a simple retweet” and that the actor-politician had “added spice” to the comment. Following this, Kangana withdrew her plea, leading to Monday’s order for her physical presence.