Rahul Gandhi moves HC to quash defamation case

Rahul Gandhi has approached the Bombay High Court seeking to quash a criminal defamation case against him for linking the RSS to the murder of journalist Gauri Lankesh. The case was filed by an RSS worker and will be heard on December 5.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has approached the Bombay high seeking its direction to quash a criminal defamation case registered against him for linking the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) to the murder of journalist Gauri Lankesh in Karnataka. The complainant is an RSS worker, Dhritiman Joshi.

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A single-judge bench of justice Sarang Kotwal has posted his petition for hearing on December 5.

Joshi claimed that he had watched television interviews of Gandhi and CPI(M) leader Sitaram Yechuri after Lankesh was killed in Karnataka and they had levelled unsubstantiated imputations against RSS and belittled the right-wing organisation. He filed a complaint in September 2017.

After the metropolitan magistrate court issued process against them, Gandhi and Yechuri filed pleas for dropping the proceedings, claiming that the complainant should have filed separate complaints as the statements were made by the political leaders at different places and different points of time, and provisions of the Criminal Procedure Code did not allow joint proceedings in such a situation.

The magistrate court, however, dismissed their pleas on November 23, 2019, prompting Gandhi to move the high court.