Lucknow: Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, on Friday, before the special MP-MLA court in Sultanpur, Uttar Pradesh, said that the 2018 defamation case against him was filed out of “political malice” and for damaging his and the Congress’ image.
The case relates to Gandhi’s alleged derogatory remarks against Union Home Minister Amit Shah during a press conference in Karnataka during the 2018 Lok Sabha elections. Shah was then the national president of the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Before the court of Special Judge Shubham Verma, Gandhi denied all the accusations against him, his lawyer Kashi Prasad Shukla told news agency PTI. “The allegations are baseless and baseless. I have never used derogatory words against anyone, nor have I used such language with the intention of defaming anyone. A false complaint has been lodged by distorting my statement,” Shukla told PTI.
“These accusations have been made against me out of political malice with the aim of destroying my image and that of my party,” Gandhi told the court, according to the lawyer. The court is scheduled to hear the case on March 9.
The case dates back to 2018 when BJP leader Vijay Mishra filed a defamation complaint against Gandhi, alleging that during the Karnataka elections in 2018, the Congress leader had made derogatory remarks against the then BJP president and the Shah.
Santosh Kumar Pandey, Mishra’s lawyer, said the cross-examination of the plaintiff and two witnesses had been completed. Gandhi had last appeared in court in this case on July 26, 2024, claiming his innocence and describing the case as a political conspiracy.
With agency input
