Kangana Ranut has never shied away from speaking her mind. But that’s now got her in court on the other side of a defamation complaint. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bollywood star and BJP MP Kangana Ranaut has said she \u201cregrets the misunderstanding\u201d caused by her 2021 tweet about the farmers\u2019 protests. Appearing before a Bathinda court, Ranaut insisted she had no intention to insult anyone and that her comments were \u201cmisinterpreted.\u201d The case was filed by Mahinder Kaur, a 73-year-old farmer from Punjab, who alleged that Ranaut wrongly identified her as Bilkis Bano. Bano is popularly known as the \u201cShaheen Bagh Dadi\u201d and accused her of being a \u201cpaid protester.\u201d Ranaut had shared a meme claiming women like Kaur were \u201cavailable for \u20b9100\u201d to attend protests. Kaur said the tweet humiliated her and damaged her reputation, prompting a legal complaint that has followed Ranaut for nearly four years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In court, Ranaut\u2019s lawyer argued that the tweet was a general comment, not aimed at any specific person, and that the actor had since expressed regret for the confusion it caused. She told reporters afterward that she \u201crespected every mother\u201d and that the post \u201cshould not be blown out of proportion.\u201d The case, however, has reignited debate over celebrity accountability on social media. Critics say Ranaut\u2019s massive following gives her words disproportionate weight, especially during a politically charged movement like the 2020-21 farmers\u2019 protests, when thousands of farmers from Punjab, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh camped at Delhi\u2019s borders demanding the repeal of new farm laws. At the time, social media became a battleground of narratives, with Ranaut among the loudest defenders of the government\u2019s position.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For Kaur, the matter was personal. She told reporters that being branded a \u201cpaid protester\u201d undermined her dignity and the sincerity of the farmers\u2019 cause. \u201cWe were protesting for our rights, not for money,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As the case drags on, Ranaut\u2019s \u201cregret\u201d may not be enough to settle the matter legally. What began as a viral post is now a cautionary tale about the risks of weaponising social media commentary, even for those used to commanding headlines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Lead image: Courtesy: @KanganaTeam<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Kangana Ranut has never shied away from speaking her mind. But that’s now got her in court on the other side of a defamation…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":40,"featured_media":12175,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[83],"tags":[162,163,161,64],"class_list":["post-12174","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-bjp","tag-bollywood","tag-kangana-ranaut","tag-news"],"yoast_head":"\n
Who is the complainant?<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n
Free speech and the question of accountability<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n