Today, On 20th January, The Supreme Court temporarily issued stay the defamation case against Rahul Gandhi over his comments about Amit Shah. Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta also requested responses from the Jharkhand government and the complainant regarding Gandhi’s petition to dismiss the case. The court’s decision comes as Gandhi challenges the defamation charge in a higher forum.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court stayed the criminal defamation proceedings against Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who was accused of labeling Union Home Minister and former BJP President Amit Shah as a murder suspect.
A Bench composed of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta requested responses from the Jharkhand government and the complainant regarding Gandhi’s plea to quash the case.
During the hearing, Senior Counsel Abhishek Manu Singhvi, representing Gandhi, argued that the complaint was filed by a third party, which he contended is not allowed in defamation cases.
He stated,
“If you are not the person aggrieved, how can you have a proxy filing of complaint?”
The Court issued a notice to both the Jharkhand government and the complainant, ruling, “All proceedings in trial shall remain stayed till further orders.”
This case originated when BJP leader Navin Jha lodged a complaint against Gandhi, claiming that during a speech on March 18, 2018, Gandhi criticized the BJP and accused Shah of murder involvement.
Initially, a magistrate court in Ranchi dismissed Navin Jha’s complaint, leading him to file a revision petition with the Judicial Commissioner in Ranchi. On September 15, 2018, earlier, the Judicial Commissioner set-aside the dismissal and remanded the case back to the magistrate court, instructing the magistrate to reassess the evidence and issue a new order regarding the prima facie material for proceeding.
Subsequently, the magistrate issued a new order on November 28, 2018, determining that there was sufficient evidence to establish a prima facie case against Rahul Gandhi under Section 500 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), which addresses defamation. As a result, a summons was issued for Gandhi to appear.
Gandhi then appealed to the High Court, contesting the Ranchi Judicial Commissioner’s September 15, 2018 order. Single-judge Justice Ambuj Nath noted that Gandhi had described BJP leaders as liars “who are drunk with power” and claimed that BJP workers would accept a person accused of murder as their leader.
Also Read : Rahul Gandhi Defamation Case | Hearing Postponed to January 22 Due to Lawyers’ Strike
The High Court stated that these remarks are prima facie defamatory under Section 499 of the IPC, observing that they imply that the BJP’s leadership is both intoxicated with power and deceitful.
It further noted,
“It means that the party workers of Bharatiya Janata Party will accept such person/persons as their leader. This imputation is prima facie defamatory in nature.”
The Court referenced Explanation 2 to Section 499 of the IPC, which includes imputations against a company, association, or group of individuals within the definition of defamation. Consequently, the Court dismissed Gandhi’s plea.
Read Order
FOLLOW US ON YOUTUBE FOR MORE LEGAL UPDATES
