The Bombay High Court has quashed a Bhiwandi magistrate court’s order that allowed an RSS functionary to introduce additional documents in a criminal defamation case against Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. The High Court directed the magistrate court to proceed with the trial according to law, emphasizing that it had not delved into the merits of the case.
The case stems from a 2014 election rally speech in which Gandhi allegedly blamed the RSS for Mahatma Gandhi’s assassination. RSS worker Rajesh Kunte filed a defamation complaint, claiming Gandhi’s statements tarnished the RSS’s reputation.
In September 2021, the High Court had previously ruled against admitting a transcript of Gandhi’s speech as evidence, stating that compelling an accused to admit or deny a document would violate constitutional protections[5]. Despite this, the magistrate court later allowed Kunte to present similar documents during proceedings, which Gandhi contested.
Gandhi’s legal team argued that these documents were not part of the original complaint and were being introduced after a nine-year delay. The RSS functionary’s lawyer maintained that the magistrate’s decision was justified.
This latest ruling by Justice Prithviraj K Chavan comes after careful consideration of arguments from both sides. The court has emphasized the need for an expeditious resolution of the case, which has been ongoing for a decade.
The defamation case has seen multiple legal twists, including Gandhi’s unsuccessful attempt to quash the case in 2015 and his subsequent decision to face trial rather than apologize. As the case now returns to the magistrate court, both parties are expected to cooperate in moving the proceedings forward efficiently.
