MOSCOW, September 24 - RAPSI. On Monday the Moscow Commercial Court postponed until September 28 its preliminary hearing of Russian oligarch and owner of business group Basic Element (BasEl) Oleg Deripaska's defamation lawsuit against Agentstvo Politicheskikh Novostey news agency, the court spokesperson told the Russian Legal Information agency (RAPSI/rapsinews.com).

The plaintiff also filed a motion to involve the National Strategy Institute, the agency's website administrator, as a co-defendant. Judge Ramziya Khatypova has declared a recess to allow the plaintiff time to produce the institute's statement from the Single State Register of Legal Entities.

The lawsuit was filed on August 1. The agency's online publication columnist Oleg Sudakov is a co-defendant in the case.

The defendants failed to appear before the court at the preliminary hearing.

RIA Novosti has yet to reach the defendants for comments.

One of Sudakov's stories published in October 2011 mentions Deripaska in connection with the tragic death of Achinsk Alimina Refinery trade union leader. However, RAPSI has received no confirmation that the lawsuit is centered on this article.

BasEl is a major Russian business group with assets in energy, engineering, construction, aircraft, agriculture, the financial sector and other areas.