Raymond: court rejects CMD’s case against father’s autobiography

By

Isabelle Crossley

Published
Jan 8, 2019

A court in Mumbai ruled to dismiss a claim by Raymond Group’s chairman and managing director Gautam Singhania that his father’s upcoming autobiography will contain defamatory statements against him.

In the latest chapter of textile giant Raymond’s family feud, Gautam Singhania asked a Mumbai court for an injunction against his father and former business head Vijaypat Singhania. The latter is currently writing his autobiography “The Incomplete Man” and, as the two have feuded for a number of years, Gautam Singhania requested an injunction on the book as well as a copy of its manuscript fearing that it could damage his reputation. 

However, the court dismissed Gautam Singhania’s request. The City Civil Judge S P Ponkshe passed an order on January 3 stating that Gautam Singhania had not provided ample evidence to suggest that the book will defame him. The lawsuit, first filed in September last year, was concluded with no prima facie case.

The court also clarified that Vijaypat Singhania is writing an autobiography, not a biography. "In this case, defendant no. 4 [Vijaypat Singhania] has specifically stated that the proposed book is his autobiography,” the court said as reported by the Press Trust of India. “That means, on his own experiences he is going to write the autobiography. Hence, the information is definitely not based on hearsay." The court also stated that, given Vijaypat’s old age and the nature of the book, granting an injunction would cause irreparable loss to the defendant. 

Penguin Random House India Pvt. Ltd., the publisher of the upcoming book also assured the court that it will conduct due diligence before publishing the book. The defendant also stated that his book will only contain the truth.