New Delhi: Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and Congress MP Rahul Gandhi on Friday appeared before the MP Judicial Court in Sultanpur and recorded his statement in connection with a 2018 criminal defamation case related to his alleged remarks against Union Home Minister Amit Shah. He left the court after attending the hearing.The next hearing in the case is scheduled for March 9. The case stems from remarks allegedly made by Gandhi during the 2018 Karnataka assembly campaign. Sultanpur-based BJP leader Vijay Mishra filed a complaint on August 4, 2018, alleging that Gandhi made objectionable and defamatory remarks against Amit Shah at an election rally in Bengaluru.
According to the charge sheet, Rahul Gandhi had said that while the BJP claimed to believe in honest and clean politics, its leader was the “party president who is an accused in the murder case”. At that time, Amit Shah was the national president of the Bharatiya Janata Party.The remarks were in reference to the 2005 Sohrabuddin Sheikh fake encounter case. However, in 2014, a special CBI court in Mumbai removed Shah, who was then the home minister of Gujarat, from his post. The complainant claimed that Gandhi’s remarks were defamatory and had damaged Shah’s reputation.The complaint was later admitted by the Sultanpur MP MLA Court. In December last year, a court issued an arrest warrant for Gandhi after he failed to appear in person.On February 20, 2024, Gandhi surrendered in court and was released on bail. His lawyer filed a bail application, which was granted after two sureties of Rs 25,000 each were submitted. The court then set a hearing date for March 2.In July 2024, Gandhi made his first statement in court, denying the charges and calling the case politically motivated.After cross-examination of the complainant and witnesses, the court in January 2026 directed Gandhi to appear in person for questioning under Section 313 of the Criminal Procedure Code. This stage allows the defendant to explain the evidence presented against him.His appearance Friday was consistent with that directive.The case is one of several defamation cases filed against Congress leaders over comments they made during political campaigns. Gandhi maintained that such cases were politically driven, while Congress leaders said they had faith in the judiciary.The matter is expected to proceed further as the court continues to review the evidence and hear arguments from both sides.
