Gujarat court issues notices to Abhisar Sharma, Raju Parulekar on Adani Group’s defamation complaints

Ahmedabad: A Gujarat court has issued notices to YouTuber Abhisar Sharma and blogger Raju Parulekar, accusing them of deliberately spreading false and defamatory content to malign the reputation of the Adani Group.

The Court of Judicial Magistrate First Class, Gandhinagar (Adalaj police station), has issued notices to both individuals and directed them to appear on September 20, according to Adani Group’s lawyer Sanjay Thakkar.

If admitted, the cases may proceed to trial, where both face penalties of up to two years’ imprisonment, fines, or both.

According to the lawyer, the notices were issued by the magistrate under Section 223 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), which says that “no cognisance of an offence shall be taken by the Magistrate without giving the accused an opportunity of being heard”.

“Upon the receipt of the notice, both of them are supposed to appear in person or through their lawyers before the court on September 20 to put forward their side. While Sharma had uploaded defamatory content on his YouTube channel, Parulekar made defamatory comments on platform X,” said Thakkar.

The complaints point to a YouTube video uploaded on August 18, 2025, by Sharma alleging thousands of bighas of land in Assam had been allotted to Adani and tying the company to a pattern of supposed political favours, as well as to a series of tweets and retweets by Parulekar since January 2025, making similar claims of land grabs, scams and undue benefits, according to the lawyer.

In both instances, Adani says the allegations were “baseless and misleading”, given that the Gauhati High Court order of August 12, 2025 — which they cited — makes no reference to the Adani Group.

The company has also clarified that Mahabal Cement Pvt Ltd, the firm at the centre of the High Court case, has no connection with Adani in any manner.

Evidence placed before the court includes the Sharma video and transcript, Parulekar’s social media posts, the Gauhati High Court order, and supporting records.

IANS