Himayani Puri, the daughter of Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri, has approached the Delhi High Court seeking legal action against what she describes as “false and malicious” reports and social media posts that link her to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Through a defamation suit, she has challenged the circulation of these claims and requested the court to intervene in order to protect her reputation.
In her petition, Puri has asked the Delhi High Court to issue directions to several social media platforms and digital intermediaries for allegedly hosting and spreading defamatory content about her. The suit specifically seeks orders directing platforms such as X, Google, Meta, and LinkedIn to remove posts and material that she claims are false and damaging. According to the petition, these platforms have allowed the continued circulation of misleading and defamatory information that harms her professional and personal reputation.
Apart from seeking the removal of the posts, Puri has also demanded compensation of ₹10 crore as damages for the reputational harm she claims to have suffered. She has further requested the court to issue orders against unidentified individuals responsible for spreading the content by invoking ‘John Doe’ or ‘Ashok Kumar’ directions. These legal provisions are commonly used in Indian courts to address cases where the identities of the accused individuals are not yet known but their actions can still be restrained through court orders.
According to details mentioned in the defamation case, the controversy began around February 22, 2026, when several social media accounts and online entities allegedly started circulating claims suggesting that Puri had direct or indirect business, financial, or personal connections with Jeffrey Epstein and his criminal activities. The petition argues that these allegations are entirely fabricated and have no factual basis.
Some of the posts and reports also claimed that Real Partners LLC, a company where Puri had previously been employed, had received funding or financial benefits linked to Epstein or individuals associated with him. Additional claims circulated online alleged that Robert Millard had worked together with Puri in orchestrating the collapse of Lehman Brothers, an assertion that the petition describes as completely baseless and defamatory.
The lawsuit states that the defendants — identified in the petition as Defendant Nos. 1 to 14 along with several unidentified individuals referred to as John Doe or Ashok Kumar — have deliberately spread these allegations through various online formats. According to the petition, these included edited or manipulated videos, misleading captions, and altered thumbnails designed to attract attention, provoke outrage, and rapidly spread across digital platforms, thereby amplifying the alleged damage to Puri’s reputation.
The petition further claims that the campaign against her appears to be organised and coordinated, with the intention of tarnishing her image and credibility both within India and internationally. It argues that the allegations are being circulated in a strategic manner to maximise public attention and cause reputational harm.
In the plea, Puri also suggests that the attacks against her may be linked to the political position of her father. The petition states that because Hardeep Singh Puri currently serves as a senior member of the Union Cabinet, she has become a target of what it describes as a malicious attempt to damage her reputation. It emphasises that she is an accomplished professional in her own right and that the allegations being spread against her are unjustified and harmful.
The matter is expected to come up for hearing before the Delhi High Court soon. According to court listings, the case may be taken up for consideration on either Tuesday or Wednesday, when the court will decide on the requests made in the defamation petition.
