The Supreme Court has accepted for processing the lawsuit filed by the judge of the National Court Manuel García-Castellónalready retired, against the leader of Podemos, Ione Belarra, for alleged violation of his right to honor by calling him “corrupt” on social networks. The Civil Chamber of the high court has adopted this decision in an order, known this Friday, in which it calls on Belarra and the Prosecutor’s Office to respond to the lawsuit within a period of 20 days, and agrees to process it through the preferred route.
At first, The magistrate requested compensation of 120,000 eurosalthough she later expanded her claim and claimed 240,000 euros by incorporating a second publication by the deputy on the social network X that supposedly violated her right to honor. García-Castellón, instructor of the Dina case Starting in 2019, he even asked the Supreme Court —without success— within that investigation the accusation of the founder of Podemos and then vice president of the Government, Pablo Iglesias.
The first comment that the magistrate denounced was published on September 2, when his retirement became effective. “Today the BOE publishes the forced retirement of Judge García-Castellón. We said it months ago and now it is confirmed, this and other corrupt judges, who have prevaricated against those of us who defend another idea of Spain, are going to get away without any sanction thanks to the PSOE. Shame,” Belarra tweeted. García Castellón emphasizes in his lawsuit that this comment, “which has had enormous repercussions,” makes “innumerable people come to believe” that he is a ‘corrupt’ and ‘prevaricating’ judge, “this assertion being absolutely false.” He considers that the publication “seriously attacks his person and his professional career,” and highlights that the comment had “three thousand interactions and a thousand comments, among which we found a multitude of humiliations, insults and contempt” towards him.
After learning that the judge had filed the lawsuit, Ione Belarra responded on the aforementioned social network: “The dirty judicial war against Podemos continues.” “There is a complaint against me for telling the truth, that what he has done to protect the PP and to persecute the political adversaries of the right is corruption, with or without conviction,” the deputy insisted. The magistrate, who has investigated causes of corruption in the National Court such as Punic case or the Villarejo casealso added this comment, dated September 20, to his claim.
