Question:medium

Principle: Whoever by words publishes any imputation concerning any person is said to defame that person.
Facts: During a marriage ceremony, A circulated a pamphlet saying sister of the bride ‘S’ is a thief, she has stolen the shoes of the bridegroom.

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Defamation is based on any statement made about a person that can harm their reputation.
Updated On: Jul 15, 2026
  • A defamed S
  • A did not defame S
  • A defamed the bridegroom
  • A defamed the bride
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The Correct Option is A

Approach Solution - 1

Defamation under this principle attaches to whoever the imputation is actually about, not to bystanders mentioned only incidentally.

  1. A defamed S: The pamphlet directly accused S of theft, so the imputation concerns S, and it is S who is defamed.
  2. A did not defame S: Incorrect, the statement about the theft is squarely about S's own conduct.
  3. A defamed the bridegroom: He is only mentioned as the shoe's owner, not accused of anything himself.
  4. A defamed the bride: The bride is not the subject of the accusation, her sister S is.

The correct answer is A defamed S.

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Approach Solution -2

Assuming each option true in turn.

  1. A defamed S: Assume true, then the imputation must concern S's own conduct. It does, the pamphlet accuses S herself of theft, matching the assumption directly.
  2. A did not defame S: Assume true, then the theft accusation must concern someone other than S. But the pamphlet names S as the one who stole the shoes, so the assumption has no other subject to point to.
  3. A defamed the bridegroom: Assume true, then the pamphlet must accuse the bridegroom of some wrongdoing. It doesn't, he is mentioned only as the shoes' owner, with no imputation made about his own conduct, so the assumption fails.
  4. A defamed the bride: Assume true, then the bride herself must be accused of something. The pamphlet says nothing about the bride's conduct at all, directing its accusation instead at her sister, so this assumption also fails.

Only the assumption that the imputation concerns S holds up, since the pamphlet's theft accusation is made directly about her.

Therefore, the correct answer is A defamed S.

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