Gujarat HC refuses to release journalist Ravi Nair from custody in Adani defamation case
He was sent to jail on September 17 for failing to appear during a hearing regarding a series of posts he had made on X between October 2020 and July 2021.
Black News 
The Gujarat High Court on Wednesday refused to grant interim relief to journalist Ravi Nair, who was seeking release from judicial custody in a criminal defamation case filed by Adani Enterprises Limited over a series of posts on X.
Nair was taken into custody on September 17 and sent to jail on the orders of a Gandhinagar court, which had issued a non-bailable warrant against him earlier this month for failing to appear in person for a hearing in the defamation case. The journalist had challenged the warrant and sought his release.
The case pertains to a series of social media posts published by Nair between October 2020 and July 2021 about the Adani Group relating to allegations by United States-based short seller Hindenburg Research and a strike against the proposed privatisation of the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust.
On February 10, a magistrate court in Gandhinagar convicted Nair and sentenced him to one year in prison.
The magistrate had said that Nair, as a journalist and public commentator, was expected to be conscious of the reach and impact of statements made on digital platforms, particularly when making categorical allegations that could affect reputations.
Nair challenged his conviction before an appellate court in Gandhinagar, which granted him bail on March 9 and directed him to remain present...
