Court summons Sonia Gandhi

A fast track court issued summons to Congress president Sonia Gandhi for allegedly hurting religious feelings of Hindus for her depiction in a poster as Goddess Durga at a public rally, HT reports.

A fast track court on Thursday issued summons to Congress president Sonia Gandhi for allegedly hurting religious feelings of Hindus for her depiction in a poster as Goddess Durga at a public rally and party’s office at Moradabad in Uttar Pradesh.

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The judge, Vijay Kumar Mandal, while hearing the revision petition of LJP leader and lawyer Sudhir Kumar Ojha, also issued summons to Uttar Pardesh Congress Committee chief Rita Bahuguna and Moradabad District Congress Committee president Ajay Tarkeshwar Soni.

The judge asked them to furnish their replies by appearing in person or through counsels on June 26, the next date of hearing. Earlier, the court had on April 14 issued notices to them asking them to explain their position.

Ojha, in his complaint, alleged the Moradabad district Congress president, in league with the UP Congress Committee chief, had put up the poster on the wall of the party’s Moradabad office on June 21, 2007. Sonia was in criminal conspiracy with them in the exercise, he alleged.

The charges were made under three sections of IPC: Sections 295 (injuring place of worship with intent to insult the religion of any class), 295 (a) (deliberate acts intended to outrage religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion) and 120(b) (criminal conspiracy).

(With agency inputs)