During his Bharat Jodo Yatra in December 2022, Rahul Gandhi had reportedly said, “Chinese soldiers are beating up Indian Army personnel in Arunachal Pradesh.” This statement was a criticism of the central government’s handling of the situation at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China. His comment led to a huge political controversy.
Lucknow: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who is the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, has been asked to appear before a special court in Lucknow. The court has summoned him over allegations that he made derogatory remarks against the Indian Army during his Bharat Jodo Yatra.
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The case was filed by Uday Shankar Srivastava, a former director of the Border Roads Organisation (BRO). He complained that Rahul Gandhi had made statements against the Indian Army in December 2022 during his Bharat Jodo Yatra. Based on this complaint, a defamation case was registered.
Rahul Gandhi has been asked to appear before the Lucknow MP-MLA court in the last week of March. This court handles cases related to Members of Parliament (MPs) and Members of Legislative Assemblies (MLAs).
During his Bharat Jodo Yatra in December 2022, Rahul Gandhi had reportedly said, “Chinese soldiers are beating up Indian Army personnel in Arunachal Pradesh.” This statement was a criticism of the central government’s handling of the situation at the Line of Actual Control (LAC) with China. His comment led to a huge political controversy.
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Many leaders from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) strongly opposed Rahul Gandhi’s statement. Several BJP members called him “anti-national” and accused his family of having ties with China. They alleged that the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation had received funds and hospitality from the Chinese government.
Despite these criticisms, Rahul Gandhi continued to raise concerns about the government’s policies regarding China. He did not step back from questioning the ruling party on national security issues.
This is not the first time Rahul Gandhi has faced legal trouble over his statements. In March 2023, a Gujarat court found him guilty in another defamation case. That case was related to a comment he made about Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s last name. The court sentenced him to two years in jail.
The sentence was significant because, under Indian law, an MP or MLA is disqualified if they are sentenced to two or more years in jail. The Opposition claimed that this was a conspiracy to remove Rahul Gandhi from Parliament. Though his sentence was suspended, it was just enough to trigger disqualification rules.
Later, the Supreme Court provided relief to Rahul Gandhi. The court put his conviction on hold and observed that the trial judge had given him the maximum punishment of two years. The Supreme Court noted that if the punishment had been even one day less, it would not have led to his disqualification.
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