Defamation case: Rahul Gandhi records statement in Sultanpur court over remarks on Amit Shah | India News
New Delhi: Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi appeared in MP MLA court in Sultanpur on Friday and recorded his statement in connection with a 2018 criminal defamation case related to his alleged comments about Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Later he left the court premises after the hearing.The next hearing of the case has been fixed on March 9. The case arose out of statements Gandhi allegedly made while campaigning for the 2018 Karnataka Assembly elections. A complaint was filed on August 4, 2018, by Vijay Mishra, a BJP leader from Sultanpur, alleging that Gandhi had made offensive and defamatory remarks against Amit Shah at an election rally in Bengaluru.
According to the complaint, Rahul Gandhi said that while the BJP claims to believe in honest and clean politics, it is led by a “party president who is accused in a murder case”. At that time, Amit Shah was serving as the national president of BJP.The comment referred to the 2005 Sohrabuddin Sheikh fake encounter case. However, in 2014, a special CBI court in Mumbai acquitted Shah in the case while he was Gujarat’s home minister. The complainant claimed that Gandhi’s statement was defamatory and damaged Shah’s reputation.Later the Sultanpur MP Court took cognizance of the complaint. In December last year, the court issued warrants against Gandhi as he failed to appear in person.On February 20, 2024, Gandhi appeared in court, surrendered and got bail. His lawyer applied for bail, which was granted after submitting two sureties of Rs 25,000 each. The court fixed March 2 for the next hearing.In July 2024, Gandhi recorded his first statement in court, denying the allegations and calling the case politically motivated.After cross-examination of the complainant and witnesses, the court directed Gandhi to appear in person for examination under Section 313 of the Criminal Procedure Code in January 2026. This phase allows the accused to explain the evidence presented against him.According to that instruction, he appeared on Friday.The case is among several defamation cases filed against Congress leaders for comments made during political campaigns. Gandhi has maintained that such cases are politically driven, while Congress leaders have said they have faith in the judiciary.Further proceedings are expected as the court continues to hear evidence and arguments from both sides.
