Himayani Puri, daughter of Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri, has filed a defamation case in the Delhi High Court seeking Rs 10 crore in damages and a permanent injunction against online content linking her to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. The suit targets social media intermediaries, including Google, X, Meta, and LinkedIn, urging them to remove posts allegedly connecting her to Epstein’s criminal activities.
According to the court filings, the defamatory content began appearing from February 22, 2026, and claimed that Puri had direct or indirect financial, business, or personal associations with Epstein. Some posts also alleged that Real Partners LLC, where she was employed, received funding or benefits from Epstein or his associates, and implicated a figure named Robert Millard in purported schemes alongside Puri.
Puri described these allegations as “entirely false, malicious, and devoid of any factual foundation,” asserting that the posts were designed to maximize public outrage, digital virality, and reputational harm. She claimed the coordinated attacks were intended to malign and discredit her both in India and internationally, citing her position as the minister’s daughter as a factor in the targeting.
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The suit seeks directions to the social media platforms to remove the defamatory statements upon notice and prevent similar content from being circulated in the future. A hearing on the matter is scheduled to take place tomorrow.
The case comes amid renewed public attention to the so-called Epstein Files, a trove of documents including emails and photos released by the US government, detailing Epstein’s interactions with prominent figures worldwide. Hardeep Puri himself had faced scrutiny in India over his email exchanges with Epstein in 2014 and 2015, although he has denied any knowledge of Epstein’s criminal conduct at the time.
Legal experts say the case highlights the growing concern over online defamation and the responsibilities of social media platforms to moderate content. If successful, Puri could secure both monetary compensation and stronger enforcement measures to protect her reputation online.
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