 "Bombay High Court grants relief to Rahul Gandhi in RSS defamation case")
The Bombay High Court has granted relief to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in the defamation case filed against him by an RSS worker. The case centres on Gandhi’s alleged statement, “RSS killed Gandhi,” made during an election rally in 2014.
On Friday, the court allowed Gandhi’s plea to quash an order by the Bhiwandi magistrate court that had permitted an RSS functionary to present certain documents belatedly in the ongoing defamation proceedings. The court’s decision is seen as a significant development in the long-standing legal battle.
Justice Prithviraj K Chavan, who presided over the single-judge bench, quashed the magistrate court’s order and directed the lower court to proceed with the trial according to the law. The high court emphasised the need for both parties to cooperate in disposing of the matter expeditiously.
Gandhi’s plea, filed in 2023, argued against the magistrate court’s allowance for Rajesh Kunte, an RSS functionary, to introduce documents related to Gandhi’s 2014 speech. The speech, in which Gandhi allegedly implicated the RSS in Mahatma Gandhi’s assassination, has been at the heart of the defamation case.
According to The Indian Express, the case history dates back to March 2014, when Gandhi, then Congress vice-president, made the controversial statement during an election rally in Thane district. This led to Rajesh Kunte filing a defamation complaint. In March 2015, the Bombay High Court dismissed Gandhi’s plea to quash the case, prompting him to approach the Supreme Court. Gandhi later withdrew his Supreme Court plea, opting to face trial without issuing an apology.
In June 2018, a Bhiwandi court framed charges against Gandhi, to which he pleaded not guilty, setting the stage for the trial.
With the latest high court ruling, the case will now continue in the magistrate court, adhering to the high court’s directives to ensure a swift and fair trial.
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