Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who appeared before Sultanpur Court in connection with a 2018 defamation case, was granted bail by the court on Tuesday. The next hearing on the case will be on March 2. Gandhi was summoned by the court ahead of his 'Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra''s entry into Amethi, his former Lok Sabha constituency.
The defamation case was filed by a BJP leader Vijay Mishra for Gandhi's remarks against Union Home Minister Amit Shah in 2018. He was granted bail by Judge Yogesh Yadav after filling bail bonds, his counsel Kashi Prasad Shukla told reporters. Mishra filed the case on August 4, 2018 for Gandhi's alleged objectionable comments against Shah at a press conference in Bengaluru on May 8, 2018 during the Karnataka elections.
The complainant referred to Gandhi's comment that the BJP claims to believe in honest and clean politics but has a party president who is an "accused" in a murder case. Shah was BJP president when Gandhi made the remark.
"The BJP is the biggest party of the country. Calling its (then) president a murderer is unjustifiable," Mishra told reporters on Tuesday. He said Gandhi had skipped several summonses.
Congress General Secretary in charge communications, Jairam Ramesh said the yatra will be paused for a short period as the District Civil Court in Sultanpur had issued a summons to Gandhi in a defamation case filed by a BJP leader in August 2018.
"Today is the 38th day of the Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra which will commence at 2 pm from Fursantganj in Amethi district and move towards Raebareli and Lucknow. This morning @RahulGandhi will be at the District Civil Court in Sultanpur that had issued a summons to him 36 hours earlier to appear before it on a defamation case filed by a BJP leader in August 2018," Ramesh post on X read.
"Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra will not be derailed. Rahul Gandhi will not be silenced. The Indian National Congress will not be intimidated," he added.
Smriti Irani dares Rahul Gandhi to contest from Amethi alone
Earlier, Union minister Smriti Irani on Monday claimed that deserted streets welcomed Congress leader Rahul Gandhi when he arrived in Amethi as part of his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra and dared him to contest from Amethi alone in the Lok Sabha elections.
Both Gandhi and Irani were in the Amethi parliamentary constituency, where the BJP leader had in 2019 humbled Gandhi who is now the MP from Kerala's Wayanad.
"Rahul Gandhi considered Amethi as the centre of power but did not provide service, that is why he was welcomed by the deserted streets of Amethi. Congress workers who welcomed Rahul Gandhi did not participate in his yatra due to which the Congress had to call workers from Sultanpur and Pratapgarh," Irani said.
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