A Delhi court on Wednesday refused to restrain Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Somnath Bharti from representing his wife Lipika Mitra in a defamation case lodged by her against Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman.

The defamation case filed by Mitra alleged that Sitharaman made “defamatory, false, and malicious” statements about her husband, which were aired widely on news platforms on TV and YouTube, with the alleged objective of “tarnishing his reputation and damaging his electoral prospects” during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

The court was hearing Sitharaman’s application seeking a direction that Bharti withdraw his Vakalatnama or the legal document concerned from the matter. Her application stated that since Bharti was Mitra’s husband, he was a personal as well as pecuniary beneficiary

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