Congress President Rahul Gandhi pleaded not guilty after being charged with a defamation case filed by an RSS leader in Maharashtra. The President is facing charges for allegedly harming the reputation of the RSS. The Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) is the ideological mentor of the ruling party BJP.
After the hearing today, Mr. Gandhi said, “Modi won’t speak a word on inflation and fuel price hike. They have been slapping cases on me, but my fight is based on ideology, I will fight against them and we will win.”
This case began before the 2014 elections when Gandhi made derogatory comments against the RSS at a rally. Mr. Gandhi accused the RSS of Mahatma Gandhi’s assassination. The case was filed by RSS worker Rajesh Kunte. Mr. Gandhi was given bail in 2016 by a court in Bhiwandi, 32 Km from Mumbai.
At the hearing, Judge Al Sheikh said, “On March 6, 2014, in a rally held for elections at Bhiwandi, you defamed the organization to which the complainant belongs. Your speech, which was telecast on channels and also published in newspapers, damaged the reputation of the complainant and his organization and you thereby committed an offense under sections 499 and 500 of IPC (defamation). Do you plead guilty?”
To this, the Congress President responded, “I plead not guilty.” Rahul Gandhi requested the Supreme Court in 2016 to dismiss the case but later withdrew the petition.
