Series of defamation cases to keep Rahul Gandhi on his toes

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi will be kept busy with court appearances in the coming days as he is facing multiple defamation cases across the country.

Gandhi appeared on Thursday before a magistrate court here and pleaded not guilty in a defamation case lodged against him by an RSS activist for allegedly linking the killing of journalist Gauri Lankesh to the RSS ideology.

The Congress leader will now face trial in the case. The Mazgaon-Sewree magistrate's court has posted the case for trial on September 22. Gandhi has been granted exemption from appearance during subsequent hearing of the trial.

Gandhi is also facing trial in another defamation case at Bhiwandi in neighbouring Thane district, filed by a local RSS worker, for allegedly blaming the Sangh for Mahatma Gandhi's assassination.

He had appeared before the court in Bhiwandi in June last year and had pleaded not guilty in that case too, after which the court framed charges against the Congress leader under sections 499 (defamation) and 500 (punishment for defamation) of the IPC.

The trial in that case is yet to commence.

"Gandhi is facing two (defamation) cases in Maharashtra (one in Mazgaon-Sewree court and the second in the Bhiwandi court," his lawyer Kushal Mor said.

Gandhi will have to next appear before courts in Bihar and Gujarat where he is facing cases for allegedly making defamatory statements against BJP and RSS during the Lok Sabha elections.

The Congress leader will have to appear on July 6 before a court at Patna in Bihar in connection with a defamation case filed against him by BJP leader and Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi.

Taking cognisance of Gandhis utterances at an election rally at Kolar in Karnataka on April 13, Modi had filed a defamation suit against him under Section 500 of the Indian Penal Code at a local court in Patna on April 18.

During the rally, Gandhi had allegedly said, be it Nirav Modi, Lalit Modi or Narendra Modi, all have a common surname...why do all thieves have a common surname?.

Modi had found Gandhis statement offensive and derogatory. He had sought an apology from the Congress leader and also filed a defamation suit against him.

Gandhi is also facing defamation cases at courts in Ahmedabad and Surat in Gujarat where he is yet to appear.