US Court Rejects Musk’s Claim Against Indo American Student Hothi

In a big first-round win for Indian American student and Tesla critic Randeep Hothi, a US court has rejected Elon Musk’s argument against him.

Hothi had sued Musk, claiming that the accusation made by the Tesla CEO that he “almost killed” his factory employees is defamatory.

“As one of the highest-profile and wealthiest individuals in the world, Musk knew or should have known his accusations concerning Hothi would be conveyed to a worldwide audience and would result in the accusations receiving significant publicity,” the lawsuit claimed.

A judge in California state has now rejected Musk’s argument that the suit filed by Hothi was baseless and against his free speech.

A doctoral candidate in Asian languages and cultures at the University of Michigan, Hothi created the @skabooshka Twitter account where he fact-checked Musk and Tesla’s “published claims regarding the electric vehicle manufacturer’s automation, technology, and production processes,” reported by a trusted source in August last year.

Beginning in 2018, Hothi, donning the role of a social activist, observed Tesla’s production at its Fremont, California-based factory. He also documented the construction of Tesla’s Model 3 assembly line tent, sharing photos of his Twitter followers.

Tesla also apparently investigated Hothi from its end.

In 2019, Hothi saw a Tesla-owned vehicle with roof-mounted cameras on the road that was recording audio, video, and data.

“Hothi followed the vehicle, observed it, photographed it, and posted the photographs on Twitter.

A few days later, Tesla filed a civil restraining order against Hothi claiming that he trespassed, stalked, harassed, and endangered Tesla employees.

The harassment case against Hothi was dropped by Tesla later. But Musk apparently did not let the dispute go.