Mumbai News

Nawab Malik apologises to Bombay high court for breaking Wankhede pledge – Times of India

MUMBAI: Maharashtra minister and NCP member Nawab Malik on Friday tendered his “unconditional apology” to the Bombay HC for making public remarks against NCB zonal director Sameer Wankhede and his family despite his earlier undertaking to refrain from comments till the court passes interim orders.
On Tuesday, the HC bench of Justices SJ Kathawalla and Milind Jadhav had directed Malik to file an affidavit explaining why action not be taken against him for wilful breach of his undertaking of November 25 and 29 not to post or make remarks against the Wankhedes in a defamation suit filed by Sameer’s father Dnyandev Wankhede. “I had no intention to disrespect, dishonor, overreach or breach the said orders,” Malik said on Friday. The bench accepted his apology in his affidavit tendered through his senior counsel Aspi Chinoy.
Malik said none of the three statements cited as his breach were press statements issued by him, but were “responses in course of interviews with journalists…to specific questions”. “I have since been advised that the undertaking would cover any responses to specific questions too and in future will not respond to any posed to me,” he said, adding that he believes that he can comment on “political misuse of central agencies and the conduct of their officers in course of their duties.”
Senior counsel Birendra Saraf, appearing for Dnyandev, said the fresh undertaking may be tweaked to say Malik not be prevented from commenting on performance of duties “hereinafter”.
The court agreed and the undertaking was changed to: “I believe my statement would not prevent me from commenting on the political misuse of central agencies and conduct of their officers in the course of performance of their official duties hereafter.” Saraf and advocate Diwakar Rai, for Wankhede, said Malik can’t speak of Wankhede’s past actions. Justice Kathawalla concurred that Malik “will not speak about this officer … ”

Source: https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/malik-apologises-to-hc-for-breaking-wankhede-pledge/articleshow/88215941.cms