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Punjab court issues notice to Congress chief Kharge in ₹100-crore defamation case
Sangrur court asks Mallikarjun Kharge to appear before it on July 10 in case filed by Hindu Suraksha Parishad founder Hitesh Bhardwaj for bracketing Bajrang Dal with outlawed organisations in Congress manifesto for Karnataka elections
A Sangrur court has issued a notice to Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge in a ₹100-crore defamation case filed by Hitesh Bhardwaj, the founder of Hindu Suraksha Parishad.
In the order issued on Friday and made public on Monday, the court asked Kharge to appear before it on July 10.
Bhardwaj sought financial compensation of ₹100 crore plus interest along with ₹10 lakh as legal fee from the Congress chief for allegedly damaging the reputation of Bajrang Dal by bracketing it with outlawed organisations, such as the Popular Front of India (PFI) and other Talibani outfits in the manifesto released by the Congress ahead of the Karnataka assembly elections.
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“The allegation in the form of comparison of Bajrang Dal with PFI and other Talibani organisations without any basis maims and impairs the name and honour of the members of Bajrang Dal and the Hindu Suraksha Parishad, whose number in crores, and also defames followers of Lord Hanuman Ji who are reverentially worshipped by crores of Hindu practitioners as well as practitioners of Dharmic and Indian religions whose number more than one billion,” Bhardwaj said.
In the run-up to the Karnataka elections, the Congress mentioned in its manifesto that it would take “decisive action” according to the law, including banning organisations such as the Bajrang Dal, the Popular Front of India and others if voted to power.
Previously, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had lost his membership in the Lok Sabha after being convicted by a sessions court in Surat for two years in a criminal defamation case. The case pertained to a remark Rahul made using the surname Modi while addressing a campaign event ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.
At a rally in Karnataka’s Kolar in April 2019, Rahul, in a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said, “How come all thieves have Modi as the common surname?”
