The Allahabad High Court on Friday took up Congress leader and Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi’s plea challenging an order that remanded a case seeking registration of an FIR against him back to the magistrate’s court in Varanasi for fresh consideration.
The matter came up before Justice Sameer Jain. The petition was filed after a Varanasi sessions court, designated to hear MP/MLA cases, had allowed a revision plea and directed the magisterial court to decide afresh an application against Gandhi.
The controversy stems from a complaint filed by one Nageshwar Mishra of Varanasi, who alleged that during a programme in the United States in September 2024, Rahul Gandhi made remarks suggesting that the atmosphere in India was “not good for Sikhs.”
Mishra claimed that Gandhi’s comments triggered protests and were provocative and divisive. He approached the Sarnath police station in Varanasi seeking registration of an FIR, and after being denied, moved the magisterial court.
On November 28, 2024, the magistrate dismissed the application, holding that since the alleged statement was made in the US, it fell outside the court’s territorial jurisdiction. However, the sessions court later set aside that decision and remanded the matter for fresh hearing.
Appearing for Rahul Gandhi, Senior Advocate Gopal Chaturvedi contended that the complaint itself was defective as it did not specify the exact date of the alleged remarks.
On the other hand, Additional Advocate General Manish Goel submitted that the high court need only decide whether the magistrate was correct in being directed to reconsider the plea. He argued that if the alleged remarks, made on foreign soil, were indeed against India, the issue warranted investigation, particularly since Gandhi had admitted to making certain utterances abroad.
The high court has not yet delivered its verdict on Gandhi’s plea and will continue hearing arguments on the question of whether the magistrate’s court is competent to consider the FIR application afresh.
