Savarkar Defamation Case: Rahul Gandhi Pleads 'Not Guilty'; To Face Trial

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday pleaded 'not guilty' in the criminal defamation complaint filed against him for allegedly making 'defamatory' speech against right-wing leader Vinayak Savarkar in London.

Special Judge Amol Shinde recorded Gandhi's plea, however, the Congress parliamentarian could not appear before the court and therefore, he moved an application through his lawyer Milind Pawar, urging the court to record his plea through his counsel.

The special judge, allowed the application and then proceeded to record the plea. The special judge then read out in the court, the speech in question and explained that as per the complaint and the material on record, Gandhi will have to face trial under section 500 (defamation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

On being asked by the special judge if he would plead guilty, Pawar, on behalf of Gandhi said, "No, I do not plead guilty."

With the court recording the plea, now Gandhi will have to face a trial in the case.

To recap, the defamation complaint asserts that Gandhi has repeatedly defamed Savarkar on various occasions over the years. One specific incident highlighted was of March 5, 2023, when Gandhi addressed the Overseas Congress in the United Kingdom.

The complainant - Satyaki Savarkar has claimed that Gandhi made intentionally wild allegations against Savarkar, knowing them to be untrue, with the intention of harming Savarkar's reputation and causing mental agony to the complainant and his family. The complaint states that the defamatory speech was delivered in England, but its impact was felt in Pune as it was published and circulated throughout India.

Satyaki, in his complaint, has submitted several news reports and a YouTube link to a video of Gandhi's speech in London as evidence. He has claimed that Gandhi falsely accused Savarkar of writing a book in which he described that he and his friends assaulted a Muslim man and derived some pleasure by it. This fact, the complaint contends, Savarkar never wrote in any book and such an incident never happened.

Satyaki argued that Gandhi made these false, malicious, and wild allegations with the specific objective of defaming Savarkar and harming his reputation.

The criminal defamation application filed by Satyaki demands maximum punishment for Gandhi under Section 500 (Punishment for defamation) of the IPC and seeks imposition of maximum compensation as per Section 357 (Order to pay compensation) of the CrPC.

Appearance:

Advocate Milind Pawar appeared for Gandhi.

Advocate Sangram Kolhatkar represented Savarkar.