UP court orders case against ANI editor Smita Prakash over alleged false news attributed to EC

A court in Uttar Pradesh’s Lucknow district has directed that a complaint case be registered against the editor of news agency ANI, Smita Prakash, for publishing allegedly false reports attributed to the Election Commission, Live Law reported.

A complaint case is a formal allegation made to a court that an offence has been committed.

The court took cognisance of a complaint filed by former Indian Police Service officer Amitabh Thakur against Prakash, alleging that ANI published reports attributed to the Election Commission that were not released on its official website or social media handles.

The order, passed by the Judicial Magistrate-III, Lucknow, on September 11, held that the complaint was procedurally in order and could be registered as a complaint case.

The complainant has been directed to appear before the court on September 26 to record his statement, the legal news outlet reported.

In his complaint, Thakur has alleged that ANI has been disseminating false information in the name of a constitutional body, without any official confirmation.

He referred to several instances in August, including the new agency’s post on X that quoted the poll body in response to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s claims of vote theft.

On August 7, Gandhi said that his party had spent six months examining the electoral rolls in Karnataka’s Mahadevapura Assembly segment...

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