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Kagaznama

Defamation Notice

At a glance

Price
Free
Stamp duty
No stamp duty in either Punjab or Chandigarh — a notice demanding retraction, removal of content or damages for defamation creates, transfers, limits or extinguishes no right in property, and is not a chargeable instrument under the Indian Stamp Act, 1899 as it applies in Punjab, or under that Act as it extends to Chandigarh.
Registration
Not registrable in either jurisdiction — outside Section 17 of the Registration Act, 1908.
Witnesses
None required for validity in either jurisdiction — this is a unilateral notice.

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Also called

  • notice for defamation
  • libel notice
  • slander notice
  • मानहानि नोटिस
  • ਬਦਨਾਮੀ ਨੋਟਿਸ

When you need it

A pre-litigation notice where someone has made or published a false statement harming the Sender's reputation — spoken, written, printed, broadcast, or posted online — demanding a retraction, an apology, removal of the content, and, if wanted, damages, before the Sender takes the matter to a civil court or a criminal complaint. Covers slander (spoken words) and libel (written, printed, broadcast or online words).

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Not a substitute for advice on whether the statement was made on an occasion the law privileges (a judicial or legislative proceeding, for instance), whether it is substantially true, or how long the Sender has to sue for it — see the notes on what a lawyer should check before this notice is sent.

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What follows is written for Punjab and Chandigarh. It states the position there rather than describing how it varies, so the amounts below are the ones that apply — worth confirming at the sub-registrar’s office, because rates change. If the property is anywhere else in India, none of this is yours.

Stamp duty

No stamp duty in either Punjab or Chandigarh — a notice demanding retraction, removal of content or damages for defamation creates, transfers, limits or extinguishes no right in property, and is not a chargeable instrument under the Indian Stamp Act, 1899 as it applies in Punjab, or under that Act as it extends to Chandigarh. Plain paper or an advocate's letterhead is enough.

Registration

Not registrable in either jurisdiction — outside Section 17 of the Registration Act, 1908. No Sub-Registrar in Punjab or in Chandigarh takes a document of this kind.

Notarisation

Not required in either jurisdiction to give this notice — notarising it adds nothing to its effect. What matters is proof that it reached the Recipient: the registered-post receipt and acknowledgement card, courier tracking, or a signed acknowledgement of hand delivery, together with independent evidence of the publication itself. If the Sender later files a private criminal complaint for the offence referred to in this notice, the complainant is examined on oath by the Magistrate at that later stage, under the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 — not at the stage of sending this notice.

Witnesses

None required for validity in either jurisdiction — this is a unilateral notice. Witnesses matter only if delivered by hand (get the receiver's name, signature and date), and separately, anyone who can vouch for having seen or heard the statement published is a witness to keep track of for the claim itself.

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Sample preview — placeholder answers, not your data

DEFAMATION NOTICE

Date: 1 April 2026

TO:
Vikram Sethi, an individual
House No. 301, Sector 22, Chandigarh 160022

FROM:
Neha Kapoor, an individual
House No. 88, Sector 9, Chandigarh 160009
Phone: 98765 43210
Email: neha.kapoor@example.com

SUBJECT: Notice for defamation — demand for retraction and apology and damages

Dear Sir / Madam,

1. THE STATEMENT COMPLAINED OF

1.1 The Recipient made, published or caused to be published the following statement concerning the Sender, by way of spoken words (slander): ""Neha Kapoor cheated her business partners and ran away with the company's money — everyone in the market knows she cannot be trusted.""

1.2 The statement was published as follows: Posted on the Recipient's public Facebook profile on 2 August 2026, visible to over 4,000 followers including several of the Sender's clients, and shared further by at least 30 other accounts before being taken down on 6 August 2026.

2. WHY THE STATEMENT IS FALSE AND DEFAMATORY

2.1 The Sender has never been accused of, investigated for, or found liable for any dishonesty by any client, partner, authority or court. The Sender's partnership with the persons referred to was dissolved by mutual written agreement dated 10 June 2026, on ordinary commercial terms, with accounts settled in full.

2.2 As a direct result, the Sender has suffered the following harm: Two prospective clients have cancelled engagements citing the post, and several existing clients have raised questions about the Sender's integrity, causing serious damage to the Sender's professional reputation and standing in the business community.

2.3 For context: The Sender and Recipient were business partners until the partnership was dissolved on 10 June 2026.

3. THE DEMAND

3.1 The Sender calls upon the Recipient, within 7 days of receipt of this notice, to give an unconditional written retraction and apology, in terms approved by the Sender, published with equal prominence to the original statement.

3.2 The Sender further calls upon the Recipient to pay damages of ₹5,00,000 (Rupees Five Lakh only) for the injury to reputation already caused.

3.3 Additionally, the Sender requires a written undertaking not to repeat the statement or any similar statement in future.

4. LEGAL POSITION

4.1 Publication of a false and defamatory statement concerning a person, to a third person, without lawful justification or excuse, is actionable in a civil suit for damages and for an injunction restraining further publication.

4.2 It is also an offence of defamation under Section 356 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023, which corresponds to Sections 499 and 500 of the erstwhile Indian Penal Code, 1860, and is punishable with simple imprisonment, fine, community service, or a combination of these. Truth is ordinarily a complete defence to a civil claim in defamation; whether an exception to Section 356 applies on these facts — including where an imputation is true and its publication is for the public good — is a question for legal advice, and nothing in this notice is to be read as a concluded view on it.

Questions about this document

Does the Defamation Notice need stamp paper or stamp duty in Punjab and Chandigarh?

No stamp duty in either Punjab or Chandigarh — a notice demanding retraction, removal of content or damages for defamation creates, transfers, limits or extinguishes no right in property, and is not a chargeable instrument under the Indian Stamp Act, 1899 as it applies in Punjab, or under that Act as it extends to Chandigarh.

See the full position on stamp duty, registration and witnesses
Does the Defamation Notice need registration in Punjab and Chandigarh?

Not registrable in either jurisdiction — outside Section 17 of the Registration Act, 1908.

See the full position on stamp duty, registration and witnesses
What does the Defamation Notice cost on Kagaznama?

Free.

Documents are free. Only kits are paid.

Does the Defamation Notice need witnesses?

None required for validity in either jurisdiction — this is a unilateral notice.

See the full position on stamp duty, registration and witnesses

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