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New Delhi, October 17, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)

A Delhi court on Saturday issued a bailable warrant against YouTuber Dhruv Rathee in a criminal defamation case filed in 2018 by Vikas Pandey, after fresh summons could not be served because the premises of Rathee's residence were found locked.

The Saket Courts issued the warrant after being informed that service of summons on Rathee remained incomplete. The court has scheduled the next hearing for October 31.

Earlier this month, the court had permitted fresh summons to be served on Rathee through dasti service, allowing the complainant to accompany the process server to facilitate delivery. However, the court was subsequently informed that the summons could not be served as the premises were locked.

The case relates to Rathee's video titled BJP IT Cell Part 2which allegedly defamed Pandey, the founder of the social media page 'I Support Narendra Modi'.

The video was also retweeted by Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor Arvind Kejriwal in 2018. Pandey had alleged that the retweet damaged his reputation.

Proceedings against Rathee have remained pending amid repeated difficulties in serving summons since 2019. The complainant has claimed that Rathee's continued absence from India delayed the proceedings. Rathee ordinarily resides in Austria.

The matter had also reached the Supreme Court in connection with Kejriwal's challenge to the criminal defamation proceedings arising from his retweet of the video.

In February 2024, Kejriwal told the Supreme Court that he had made a mistake by sharing the video. A Bench comprising Justice Sanjiv Khanna, who later became Chief Justice of India and has since retired, and Justice Dipankar Datta stayed the trial court proceedings against Kejriwal while considering his plea challenging the Delhi High Court's refusal to quash the summons issued against him.

The Delhi High Court had earlier upheld the summoning order, observing that retweeting allegedly defamatory content could attract prosecution under Section 499 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

The latest order concerns the proceedings against Rathee and follows the court's finding that the fresh summons could not be served.