49. After having heard the learned Counsel for both the parties at length and after perusal of the impugned judgment and order and also the various judgments cited by both the parties, it is clear that in any event, the principles of law in England and in India with regard to grant of interlocutory reliefs in a civil action for Libel are different. In England, the principle of law is that in case of an action for defamation, once the defendants raise the plea of justification at the interim stage, the plaintiff will not be entitled to an interlocutory injunction. To put in other words, in England, a mere plea of justification by the defendant would be sufficient to deny the plaintiff any interim relief. As far as India is concerned, as has been clearly held by this Court in the judgments referred to hereinabove, specially the judgment of this Court in the case of Dr. Yashwant Trivedi v. Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Private Ltd. dated 21st March, 1989 and the judgment of appellate Bench dated 29th June, 1989 with regard to the same matter in appeal, the judgment of this Court in Purshottam Odhnvji Solanki v. Sheela Bhatta dated 3rd December, 1990, judgment of this Court in the case of Mrs. Betty Kapadia v. Magna Publishing Co. Ltd. dated 22nd July, 1991, and the judgment in the case of Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd. v. Magna Publishing Co. Ltd., dated 21st July, 1995, it is clear that in India, a mere plea of justification would not be sufficient for denial of interim relief. The defendants, apart from taking a plea of justification will have to show that the statements were made bona fide and were in public interest, and that the defendants had taken reasonable precaution to ascertain the truth, and that the statements were based on sufficient material which could be tested for its veracity. Therefore, in India, the Court is very much entitled to scrutinise the material tendered by the defendants so as to test its veracity and to find out whether the said statements were made bona fide and that whether they were in public
