A special court in Pune granted bail to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday in a criminal defamation case filed by the grandnephew of Hindutva ideologue Vinayak Damodar Savarkar. The case arises from allegations that Gandhi made objectionable remarks about the late freedom fighter during a speech in London earlier this year.
In the speech, Gandhi had allegedly stated that VD Savarkar had written in a book about an incident where he and a few friends beat up a Muslim man, with Savarkar reportedly feeling “happy” about it.
Satyaki Savarkar strongly denied these allegations, calling them “fictitious, false, and malicious.” He further asserted that no such incident had ever occurred, and that VD Savarkar had never written anything to this effect. In his complaint, Savarkar said that Gandhi’s statements were damaging to the reputation of his great-granduncle. Following the complaint, the Pune court directed the police to investigate the matter. The Vishrambaug police station conducted the inquiry and concluded that there was prima facie evidence supporting the allegations of defamation.
At a previous hearing, Gandhi’s lawyer had sought exemption from appearing on December 3 due to Parliament’s winter session. The court granted the exemption but warned that strict action would be taken if Gandhi fails to appear for the next hearing, scheduled for January 10.
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