“It Was a Misunderstanding”: Kangana Ranaut Granted Bail in Bathinda Court Over Defamation Case Filed by Elderly Farmer

New Delhi: Actor-turned-politician and BJP MP from Mandi, Himachal Pradesh, Kangana Ranaut was granted bail by a Bathinda court on Monday in a defamation case filed by 77-year-old woman farmer Mahinder Kaur. The case dates back to the 2020–2021 farmers’ protest, where Kangana allegedly made a derogatory remark in a social media post.

Kangana appeared before the Bathinda Judicial Magistrate First Class (JMIC) Lakhbir Singh after her plea for a virtual appearance was rejected. She arrived at the court amid tight security and submitted her bail bond, following which the matter was referred to JMIC Inderjit Singh, the special court handling cases involving elected public representatives. The next hearing has been scheduled for November 24.

After completing court proceedings, Kangana told reporters that she had already expressed regret for her social media post against the woman farmer. “It was just a misunderstanding. I had only retweeted a meme circulating online and did not intend to hurt anyone,” she said.

The BJP MP further added that she had apologised to Mahinder Kaur’s husband since the complainant could not be present in court. “Several memes were being circulated during that time, and one of them was retweeted by me inadvertently,” she explained.

The case originated from a tweet made by Kangana during the farmers’ protest in which she shared a photograph of Mahinder Kaur, comparing her to Bilkis Bano, the elderly woman protester from the Shaheen Bagh movement. Kangana allegedly remarked that such women were “available for Rs 100 to join protests,” triggering widespread outrage.

Following this, Mahinder Kaur, a farmer from Bahadurgarh Jandian village in Bathinda, filed a defamation complaint in January 2021, claiming that her dignity and reputation were severely damaged by Kangana’s comment.