HDFC Bank's Press Statement Not Defamatory Against Lilavati Trust: Bombay High Court Imposes Rs 5 Lakh Cost On Lilavati Trust

The Bombay High Court on Tuesday (June 9) refused to pass an interim injunction against HDFC Bank and it's CEO Sashidhar Jagdishan to restrain them from making any statements against the Lilavati Kirtilal Mehta Trust or its Trustees Prashant or Charu Mehta.

The court has also imposed a hefty cost of Rs 5 lakh on the Trust be paid to HDFC Bank within six weeks.

Single-judge Justice Somasekhar Sundaresan said the statements made by the HDFC Bank in a Press Release could not be said to be defamatory or retaliatory defamatory as it were made only after the Trustees opened a "spree" of filing multiple frivolous litigation only to lash out at the Bank.

Notably, the Trustees and HDFC Bank have locked horns in a legal spat after Prashant Mehta was made a party to recovery proceedings before the Debt Recovery Tribunal (DRT) initiated at the behest of the Bank. Prashant was made party post his father - Kishor Mehta's death.

Justice Sundaresan noted that the Lilavati Trust, which runs the famous Lilavati Hospital in Mumbai, had organised Press Conferences, making allegations against HDFC Bank and it's higherups. The Trust, among several civil and criminal proceedings, had also filed a complaint before the Minority Commission alleging that it was due to the harassment by the Bank for recovery of loan amounts, their father Kishor, who belonged to the minority religion - Jainism, died.

This is a developing story.

Case Title: Lilavati Kirtilal Mehta Trust vs HDFC Bank Limited (Interim Application 3095 of 2025)