'Fighting Indian state' remark: Court to hear case against LoP Rahul Gandhi on Jul 18

Time of India

6 hours ago

A local court on Monday set July 18 to hear a case against
Leader of Opposition
Rahul Gandhi over his contentious remarks on "fighting the Indian state itself".
Additional District Judge (ADJ-II) Aarti Faujdar set July 18 as the next hearing owing to the absence of Gandhi's lawyer and his junior requested for the next date, petitioner's counsel Sachin Gupta said.
He said they sought a direction from the court to ensure Gandhi's presence in court.
During the inauguration of the Congress' new headquarters in Delhi on January 15, Gandhi alleged that the
BJP
and the
RSS
had captured every institution of the country and said, "We are now fighting the BJP, the RSS and the Indian State itself."
Petitioner Simran Gupta, from an outfit called
Hindu Shakti Dal
, said, "On January 15, Leader of Opposition (in the
Lok Sabha
) Gandhi, during the inauguration of the Congress' new headquarters in Delhi, had said that 'our fight is not only with the RSS and the BJP but also with India state."
Live Events
This comment demonstrates disrespect towards the citizens and democracy of the country, the petitioner said.
"Rahul Gandhi's statement deeply hurt the sentiments of people across the country. I had earlier approached the District Magistrate and the SP in Sambhal, but no action was taken. As a result, I filed a case on January 23 in court."
The court had previously asked Gandhi to appear on April 4 and later extended the date to May 7 for submission of his response.
In the last hearing in May, when Gandhi's counsel was absent, a junior lawyer sought adjournment, which the court allowed and posted the matter on June 16.