According to Winfield, defamation means publication of a statement that lowers a person's reputation in the right thinking members of the society.
There are two kinds of defamation under English Law i.e.,
Liabel - When defamation is done by representation in a written form and such defamation stays in permanent form.
Slander - It means defamation through spoken words or gestures.
However, under Indian law both the kinda are stated under defamation only.
Essentials of Defamation
Words must be false and defamatory -
It should be a statement which is harming the reputation of the other person.
In the case of South India Railway Company v/s Ramakrishna ILR(1890), the railway guard was checking the tickets and one of the passengers was not showing his ticket .
The railway guard made a statement saying that "I think he does not have the ticket ."
The plaintiff took out his ticket and sued the guard for defamation.
The court held in this case that the statement by the guard is a bonafied statement as he was performing his duty, hence he was not liable.
To establish defamation, the statement in question must be defamatory, meaning it tends to lower the reputation of the plaintiff. Whether a statement is defamatory depends on how right-thinking members of society are likely to perceive it. The defendant cannot use a defence that the statement was not intended to be defamatory if it causes a feeling of hatred, contempt, or dislike.
Defaming words must refer to the plaintiff
It states that the defaming statement should be directed towards th plaintiff, then the defendant will be liable for defamation.
In the case Halton and Co. V/s Jones
An animation company used the plaintiff's name to display a fictional character.
The defendant argued that he was not referring to the plaintiff while giving such name to the character.
The court held on this case that in such cases the name will be common for many people but the defendant has to prove his innocence.
Words must be published
It states that the defamatory statement should be known to the 3rd party. There is no defamation in personal communication of two person.
In the case of T.J. Ponnen v/s M.C. Verghese(1970)
A husband wrote letters to the wife during seperation in which he has also mentioned some defamatory words about the wife's father
The letter was written to the wife within the personal communication and mot for publication
The court held in this case that the defenders will not be liable for defamation as the words were not meant to be published.
Defences to Defamation
Truth or justification - It states that the defamatory statement can be justified if it is true and the defendant needs to prove the truth with facts and evidences.
Fair comment - It should be done without any malice intention . Also it should be done in public interest and to form an opinion for the public. Also it should includes critique and critical analysis.
Privilege communication - It includes all the statements which are said in the parliamentary proceedings and such statements will not be covered under defamation.
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