Hearing on Defamation Case against Rahul Gandhi Postponed Again

A defamation case filed against Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in 2018, alleging an objectionable remark targeting Union Home Minister Amit Shah, will have its hearing rescheduled for May 14.

This adjustment comes as no judge has been assigned to the MP-MLA court in Sultanpur.

Absence

According to Gandhi’s counsel, Kashi Prasad Shukla, the hearing, initially set for Thursday, couldn’t proceed due to the absence of an assigned judge. Consequently, the MP-MLA court has set May 14 as the new date for the hearing. The defamation complaint against Gandhi was lodged by BJP leader Vijay Mishra six years ago.

Last December, a warrant was issued against Gandhi by the court. Consequently, Gandhi suspended his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra in Amethi on February 20, appeared in court, and was granted bail.

Complaint

The complaint against Rahul Gandhi was filed on August 4, 2018, for his alleged objectionable comments against Shah, made during a press conference in Bengaluru in May of the same year, amid the Karnataka elections.

Referring to Gandhi’s remark about the BJP’s purported commitment to honest and clean politics despite having a party president who is an “accused” in a murder case, the complainant noted Shah’s tenure as BJP president during Gandhi’s statement. Approximately four years before Gandhi’s comment, a special CBI court in Mumbai discharged Shah in a 2005 fake encounter case when he served as the minister of state for home in Gujarat.

Read More: Supreme Court, Delhi High Court, States High Court, Other Courts, International