News Date :
New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has more than 10 criminal defamation cases pending against him in various parts of the country but has not filed any defamation case against anyone.
Gandhi’s opponents too have made some controversial statements against him and his family and have even labelled him ‘Pappu’ but the Congress leader is yet to file any defamation suit against any of them.
In fact, in 2015, Gandhi had challenged the criminal defamation law itself before the Supreme Court alleging that the same was being misused to gag political opponents and the media.
The top court had, however, dismissed the plea.
Recently, a Magistrate court in Surat convicted Gandhi for criminal defamation and sentenced him to two years in prison for his remark, “Why all thieves have Modi surname?”
Gandhi was disqualified from Lok Sabha consequent to his conviction.
Gandhi’s ‘speeches’ have landed him in trouble several times as more than a dozen cases have been filed against him, particularly for defaming Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and also BJP’s ideological mentor – Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).
Below are the defamation cases pending against Rahul Gandhi across the country.
For linking RSS to Mahatma Gandhi
Addressing an election rally at Thane district in March 2014, Rahul Gandhi said that “RSS people killed Gandhiji.”
His statement stoked a controversy and nne Rajesh Kunte, the chief of RSS’s Bhiwandi Unit, sued Gandhi for defaming the RSS.
The court framed charges against Gandhi, who pleaded not guilty.
“The trial in this case is yet to begin as the complainant has not brought any witness yet,” said advocate Kushal Mor, who represents Gandhi in the case.
Notably, in August 2016, Gandhi clarified in his affidavit filed before the Supreme Court that he never blamed RSS as a whole institution for the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi. He stated that he had categorically said that RSS workers or people associated with the RSS have killed Gandhiji and not RSS as an organisation.
“RSS people did not allow me to enter temple”
In December 2015, while campaigning in the then poll-bound Assam, Rahul Gandhi was to visit the Barpeta Satra monastery but later claimed that people of the RSS restrained him from entering the temple.
“I wanted to visit the Barpeta temple. The RSS people stopped me from going to the temple. This is the way BJP operates. They put women in front of me and prevented me from going in,” he had said.
Soon after this, RSS activist Anjan Bora filed a defamation suit against Gandhi. He alleged that Gandhi insulted women devotees.
Demonetisation comment on Amit Shah, Ahmedabad District Co-operative Bank (2 FIRs)
In June 2018, Gandhi raked up controversy when he posted a tweet accusing Amit Shah of being a director of the Ahmedabad District Cooperative Bank. He alleged that the bank has exchanged ₹750 crores of demonetised money within a span of five days.
The Congress leader had relied upon an RTI reply to make this allegation.
“Congratulations Amit Shah ji, Director, Ahmedabad Dist Cooperative Bank, on your bank winning 1st prize in the conversion of old notes to new race. 750 Cr in 5 days! Millions of Indian whose lives were destroyed by Demonetisation, salute your achievement,” the tweet said.
In this tweet, he had attached a photo of Shah with the caption – “THE DIRECTOR of the bank that collected the highest number of demonetised notes. The PRESIDENT of the party that got 80% richer after demonetisation.”
Subsequently in August 2018, the bank and its chairman Ajay Patel filed two separate criminal defamation complaints against Gandhi. They claimed that the ‘baseless’ statements made by Gandhi have tarnished their image.
A local court in Ahmedabad granted bail to him in the matter in July 2019.
Linking RSS to the murder of journalist Gauri Lankesh
In September 2017, renowned journalist Gauri Lankesh was shot dead outside her house in Bengaluru allegedly by some right-wing activists.
Within hours of her death, Gandhi in a press briefing said,
“Anybody who speaks against the ideology of the BJP, against the ideology of RSS is pressured, beaten, attacked and even killed.”
The statement did not go down well with RSS activists and lawyers – Dhrutiman Joshi and Aditya Mishra.
Both Joshi and Mishra filed criminal defamation and a civil suit respectively.
In the criminal defamation proceedings, Gandhi along with Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI (M)] leader Sitaram Yechury appeared before a local court in Mumbai in 2018. The court framed charges against the duo and they got bail.
“However, the trial is yet to commence in this case. He was given bail and the Congress MP who stood surety for Gandhi has died. So as of now, Gandhi has to furnish fresh surety for his bail. Also, he is not willing to proceed with the trial as he has not yet filed written submissions,” Joshi said.
The matter would be heard next on April 15.
The civil suit filed by Mishra is pending in a local court in Thane. Mishra has sought ₹1 compensation from Gandhi for his controversial comments.
“I have sought a permanent injunction against Gandhi so that he does not use such lose language against RSS in future. However, he has not filed any written statement in the matter yet and because of this there has been no interim injunction,” Mishra informed.
This matter is likely to be heard on June 6.
Modi is ‘commander-in-thief’ comment
In September 2018, when the Congress was training its guns on the BJP over the Rafale fighter jet deal, Rahul Gandhi while citing a French publication’s report, tweeted, “The sad truth about India’s commander-in-thief.”
This tweet was targeted at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, whom the Congress leader accused of making changes to the deal to benefit Reliance.
A former BJP leader Mahesh Shrishrimal took strong objection to this statement and filed a criminal defamation against Gandhi. The matter is pending before a court in Girgaon. He claimed that by calling the Prime Minister “commander-in-thief”, Gandhi has alleged theft against all members of the BJP and Indian citizens.
“The complainant is yet to bring in any witness in the case to adduce evidence and substantiate his claims,” advocate Kushal Mor said.
Comment against Amit Shah
In April 2019, while addressing an election rally in Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, Rahul Gandhi allegedly accused the then BJP President Amit Shah of being a murder accused.
He said,
“Murder accused BJP Chief Amit Shah, wah, kya shaan hai…”
BJP corporator Krishnavadan Brahmbhatt sued him for criminal defamation. He filed proceedings before a court in Ahmedabad stating that since Shah had been discharged from the Sohrabuddin alleged fake encounter case, it was ‘slanderous’ to call him a murder accused. The same is pending.
“Congress BJP Ki tarah Hatyare ko Party Adhyaksh Nahi Sweekaregi” (2 FIRs)
In 2019, Rahul Gandhi made a controversial speech in Jharkhand during Congress convention and once again targeted Amit Shah of being a murder accused.
He said,
“Congress BJP Ki tarah Hatyare ko Party Adhyaksh ke roop me sweekar nhi kar sakti.” (Congress cannot accept a murderer as its Party President like BJP).
Two defamation cases were filed on this statement – one in Chaibasa district and another in Ranchi by BJP workers Pratap Katiyar and Naveen Jha.
However, owing to a ‘no-coercive action’ order passed by the Jharkhand High Court in these cases on a plea by Gandhi, the matters are pending. The summons issued in the two cases are yet to be executed.
“Why all thieves have Modi surname?” (3 FIRs)
The controversial statement ‘Why all thieves have Modi surname?” made by Rahul Gandhi was criticised by the saffron party workers across the country as the same targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi and compared him to economic offenders like Nirav Modi and Lalit Modi.
Three cases were against Gandhi for making such a controversial comparison in an election rally in Karnataka’s Kolar in 2019.
One was filed by former BJP MLA Purnesh Modi in Surat.
A Magistrate court convicted Gandhi and sentenced him to two years in jail for the same.
The other defamation case was filed by an advocate Pradeep Modi, who took strong objection to the statement. The case is pending in a local court in Ranchi. As on date, trial has commenced and it has reached evidence stage.
The third matter on this very statement was filed by Sushil Kumar Modi, the former deputy chief minister of Bihar. He contended that the comments have not only defamed the Prime Minister but every individual whose surname is Modi.
Gandhi is on bail in this matter too.
“Savarkar betrayed freedom fighters, apologised to British” (2 FIRs)
The latest defamation cases against Rahul Gandhi are the ones filed in November 2022 for his ‘derogatory’ comments made during ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ on Vinayak Damodar Savarkar.
In a press briefing, Gandhi said,
“Savarkar betrayed freedom fighters like Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru and Sardar Patel by signing a letter of apology to the British before independence. In a letter, written to the British, he had said ‘Sir, I beg to remain your most obedient servant’ and signed on it. He helped the British.”
Taking objection to the comment, Shiv Sena (Eknath Shinde faction) leader Vandana Dongre filed a criminal defamation complaint before a police station in Thane.
A similar complaint was also filed by Savarkar’s grandson Vinayak Savarkar in Shivaji Park police station in Mumbai for hurting the sentiments of citizens by making ‘derogatory’ remarks against Savarkar.
