Journalist Rajdeep Sardesai on Wednesday withdrew his appeal challenging a Delhi High Court order that had directed him to delete a social media post containing an 18-second video clip depicting a verbal altercation between BJP leader Shazia Ilmi and an India Today journalist.

The move came after a Division Bench of Justices Navin Chawla and Renu Bhatnagar expressed disinclination to interfere with the order, noting that the decision by the Single Judge appeared to be well-reasoned.

Earlier, on April 4, Justice Manmeet Singh Arora had directed the removal of the video, observing that it infringed upon Ilmi’s right to privacy. The video, recorded after Ilmi exited a televised debate hosted by Sardesai, captured her interactions with a video journalist at her home. The order confirmed interim directions issued in August 2024, when the court had also imposed costs of ₹25,000 on Ilmi for failing to disclose certain tweets.

Sardesai’s appeal had contended that Ilmi had suppressed material facts during the proceedings.

The dispute stems from a debate held on July 26, 2024, on the Agnipath scheme, during which Ilmi participated remotely from her residence. During the live discussion, she objected while retired Major General Yash Mor was presenting his views. A verbal clash ensued between her and Sardesai, leading Ilmi to exit the broadcast.

That night, Ilmi alleged via a post on X that Sardesai had lowered her volume during the show. She wrote, “Remember I have been on both the sides and know how to handle bullies like you...”

The following morning, Sardesai responded by posting a clip that allegedly showed Ilmi throwing a microphone and ejecting the India Today journalist from her home. He claimed the video supported his version of events following her abrupt exit from the debate.

Ilmi, in response, accused the channel of violating her privacy by continuing to record after she had withdrawn from the program, and subsequently filed a defamation suit.

In August 2024, the High Court passed an interim order asking Sardesai to remove the video. This was upheld in April 2025, with the Court later also issuing contempt notices to other X users who had reposted the clip in defiance of court directions.

Additionally, the Court directed X to disclose basic subscriber information (BSI) of those users. X sought modification of this direction, but Justice Arora rejected the plea and ordered the platform to share BSI details within 36 hours. The judge also criticized repeated violations of the takedown order.

Senior Advocate Rajiv Nayar, along with Advocates Hrishikesh Baruah and Utkarsh Dwivedi, represented Sardesai. Advocates Nattasha Garg, Thakur Ankit Singh, and Anubhav Dubey appeared for Ilmi.