Amman - A Jordanian court on Monday acquitted columnist Khalid Mahadin of a slander charge filed against him by the lower house of parliament, judicial sources said.

The chamber's Permanent Bureau accused Mahadin of defaming the House of Representatives in an article he published online in mid- March urging King Abdullah II to intervene to stop "illegal privileges" given to deputies.

"What Mahadin said in his article was nothing more than legal criticism because he sought to protect society's interests," the court said in its verdict.

Mahadin's lawyer, Saleh Armouti, praised the ruling saying that it "backed an article in the constitution which guaranteed freedom of opinion." (dpa)