Janvi Bhatia

Who Is Janvi Bhatia?

In 2023, Janvi Bhatia, then a Duke University student, falsely accused another student of sexual assault.
- She claimed he grabbed her breast and aggressively grabbed her outside a bathroom at a nightclub.
- The accusations were completely false. Video surveillance showed the student she accused did not do these things, nor did anyone else.
She went on to sue the student she had wronged for defamation because he told people he had been falsely accused.
- The Court dismissed her claims after finding they had no merit.
A North Carolina jury reviewed:
- Surveillance footage
- Text messages, including ones Janvi had deleted
- Testimony from Janvi and other witnesses
The jury found Janvi Bhatia:
- Liable for libel per se – a form of written defamation so serious that harm is presumed under the law
- Responsible for monetary damages in the amount determined by the jury
The consequences of her accusation:
- The accused student was humiliated, socially ostracized, and delayed his medical career
- Janvi never retracted, never apologized, and never accepted responsibility

The Lies She Told

📌 Lie #1: Janvi claimed her breast was groped and her shoulder was grabbed aggresively by a student at a nightclub in Durham, NC

The Truth:

Surveillance video from the nightclub showed no such contact. Footage from eight different cameras was reviewed. No groping or grabbing occurred by the student she accused, or anyone else. The jury found her claims false.

📌Lie #2: Janvi claimed that she only told her lies to two people

The Truth:

The jury saw evidence that Janvi texted her accusations to others.

Her claim under oath that she only told her lies to two people was directly contradicted by her own digital trail.

📌 Lie #3: Janvi claimed that she never accused him of sexual assault

The Truth:

Janvi described conduct that meets North Carolina’s legal definition of sexual battery, which carries mandatory sex offender registration. She wrote in her message that the student “grabbed my boob,” and called it “really wrong,” indicating she knew the seriousness of the allegation. The jury agreed that her message constituted a defamatory criminal accusation.

Each of these statements was proven false at trial, either by direct video evidence or her own communications. Janvi Bhatia had multiple chances to correct the record — and never did.