Bathinda, Jan. 7 -- A special court in Bathinda has directed Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP from Mandi and actor Kangana Ranaut to appear in person on January 15 at the next hearing of a defamation case filed against her.

In an order passed on Monday, judicial magistrate first class (JMIC) Inderjeet Singh said that an application seeking exemption from her personal appearance has been dismissed. The court released a copy of the order on Tuesday, taking a serious view of Ranaut's absence from the proceedings without citing a valid reason.

The defamation case was filed in 2021 by Mahinder Kaur, a septuagenarian resident of Bahadurgarh Jandian village in Bathinda district. Kaur alleged that Ranaut defamed her in a post on social media pla...