The Bombay High Court on Wednesday extended till September 26 the interim relief granted to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi from appearance before a local court here in a defamation complaint pertaining to his alleged remarks against Prime Minister Narendra Modi in 2018. The complainant, who claims to be a BJP worker, had alleged that Gandhi's "commander-in-thief" remark in the context of the Rafale fighter jet deal amounted to defamation. A single bench of Justice S V Kotwal adjourned the hearing till September 26 on the plea filed by Gandhi challenging the summons issued to him by the local court in 2021. "The interim relief granted earlier will continue till then," Justice Kotwal said. Gandhi's plea was adjourned after the complainant's lawyer sought time. Rahul Gandhi was directed by the local court to appear before it in a defamation complaint filed by Mahesh Shrishrimal. The defamation complaint against the Congress leader had been filed for Gandhi's "commander-in-thief" ...
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday completed his Ayurvedic wellness treatment at the famous Kottakkal Arya Vaidya Sala here and left for Delhi. In a Facebook post, Gandhi said his stay at the hospital was a rejuvenating experience. He thanked the doctors and staff for the "love and care" they shared for him. "My stay at the Arya Vaidya Sala in Kottakkal has been a rejuvenating experience. My heartfelt thanks to Dr. PM Varier and his team of doctors and other staff, for the love and care they shared with me these past few days," he posted on Facebook with a picture. On July 25, Gandhi attended a condolence meeting at Malappuram, organised by the Congress party in memory of former Kerala chief minister Oommen Chandy. Last Wednesday, he offered prayers at Sri Viswambhara Temple situated on the premises of Arya Vaidya Sala. Later, Gandhi had also witnessed a Kathakali performance at PSV Natyasangham, a centre of national repute. In a Facebook post, Gandhi had said that he thor
The Congress high command has convened two meetings with the party leaders in Karnataka in New Delhi on August 2, apparently to quell the dissidence brewing for some time now, top party sources said. According to sources in the Congress, the first meeting will take place between the party high command and the top Congress leaders in Karnataka. "In that meeting, party president Mallikarjun Kharge, former Congress president Rahul Gandhi, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, Deputy Chief Minister and state Congress president D K Shivakumar, Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister H K Patil, general secretaries K C Venugopal and Randeep Singh Surjewala, who is also the Karnataka in-charge and some other top functionaries will take part," a Congress office-bearer told PTI. The second meeting will take place with the Congress ministers where some senior party MLAs may take part, the office-bearer added. The meetings are taking place in the wake of the Congress Legislative Party (CLP) meeting on .
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday alleged that the BJP in its "greed for power" is playing with "women's respect" as well as the self-respect of the country. In a Facebook post, Gandhi shared a video montage built with media reports about incidents of sexual assault to attack the central government. The video referred to such incidents as the sexual assault on two women who were stripped and paraded by a mob in Manipur, alleged sexual harassment of women wrestlers by outgoing WFI chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, alleged killing of a woman in Uttarakhand in which the son of a BJP leader was accused, and the release of the convicts in the Bilkis Bano gangrape case. "A country which does not respect its women can never progress. In the greed for power, the BJP is playing with both the respect of women as well as the self-respect of the country," the former Congress president said in his post in Hindi. Gandhi's remarks come amid the opposition's continued attack on the government
The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) told the Delhi High Court on Thursday that social media posts by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi "revealing the identity" of a minor Dalit girl, raped and killed in 2021, was in violation of the law protecting the identity of the victim. The child rights body presented its stand before the court in an affidavit filed by it on a petition seeking registration of an FIR against Gandhi for publishing a photograph with the parents of the victim that led to her identification. "Shri Rahul Gandhi posted a picture of his meeting with the parents of the minor victim girl on his social media accounts thereafter revealing the identity of the minor girl. The tweet/post of .. Shri Rahul Gandhi is in the violation of provisions of Juvenile Justice Act, 2015 which makes it explicitly clear that any information including family details should not be published in any form of media which could lead to the identification of any minor victim,"
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi charged on Thursday that the BJP-RSS are only interested in power and are working towards dividing the country as they not care about the sorrow and pain of people. Addressing a Youth Congress programme virtually, Gandhi said, "The BJP-RSS only want power and can do anything to get power. For power, they will burn Manipur, they will burn the entire country. They don't care about the sorrow and pain of the country." Be it Haryana, Punjab or Uttar Pradesh, "they will sell the entire country as they only want power," Gandhi alleged and added that for the Congress, this is the fight. "On one side, you are sitting and you have love for the country and whenever the country is hurt or its citizens are hurt, you will also get hurt and you will be sad. But they do not have any such feeling in their heart. The RSS-BJP people do not feel any pain. Because they do the work of dividing the country," he told the Indian Youth Congress workers. The Congress shared ...
Covering Rahul Gandhi's journey from when he officially entered politics in March 2004 to when he ended his Bharat Jodo Yatra in January 2023, an upcoming book attempts to analyse the Congress leader's ideas, leadership, reason and emotions. "Strange Burdens: The Politics and Predicaments of Rahul Gandhi" by journalist-author Sugata Srinivasaraju is not an effort to understand Gandhi's "failures and successes in tabular columns" but speculate in the best traditions of political commentary "why he is where he is, both politically and as an individual", according to publishing house Penguin Random House India (PRHI). Divided into 11 chapters, the narrative traverses two decades with the intention of understanding Gandhi's "politics and predicaments, confusions and contradictions, triteness and triumph, as well as his burdens and benignity". " " 'Strange Burdens' is not a biography but a book of political commentary ... The book does not seek to answer questions about his suitability
Hitting back at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his remarks on the opposition alliance, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday said "call us what you want", but "we are INDIA" and "will rebuild the idea of India in Manipur". Modi slammed the Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) as the most directionless the country has ever seen and cited reviled names, such as East India Company and Indian Mujahideen, to assert that people cannot be misled merely by the use of the country's name. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Pralhad Joshi said the prime minister told a BJP Parliamentary Party meeting that the conduct of the opposition has been such that as if it has decided to stay in the opposition for long. Hitting back at Modi, Gandhi tweeted: "Call us whatever you want, Mr Modi. We are INDIA. We will help heal Manipur and wipe the tears of every woman and child. We will bring back love and peace for all her people." "We will rebuild the idea of India in Manipur," the .
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Monday slammed the BJP over the incident in Madhya Pradesh's Chhatarpur in which a Dalit has alleged that a man from an OBC community smeared his face and body with human excreta, saying the ruling party's "sabka saath" slogan has become a "PR stunt". Kharge demanded strict action in the matter. The Dalit man alleged that Ramkripal Patel, who belongs to an OBC community, smeared his face and body with human excreta after he accidentally touched the latter with grease. A case has been registered against the accused under relevant provisions in connection with the incident, a police official told PTI. The victim, Dashrath Ahirwar, approached the police on Saturday, he said. In a tweet in Hindi, Congress president Kharge said within a month, another very condemnable and painful incident of atrocities on Dalits and tribals has happened in Madhya Pradesh, which is putting humanity to shame. "According to NCRB Report (2021), in BJP-ruled Madhya .
Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge and party leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra will address a public meeting in Rajasthan's Banswara district on August 9, its state in-charge Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa said on Friday. August 9 is celebrated as 'Adivasi Day' and preparations are underway for the public meeting, he said. Congress leaders, including Rahul Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, will come to Banswara to address people from the tribal communities, Randhawa told reporters. Randhawa was here to take part in a membership drive for the party's IT cell. He said a strong IT cell plays an important role in mitigating the rumours spread by opposition parties. Replying to a question on the distribution of party tickets, he said, "No candidate will be parachuted in. The names will be decided on the basis of consensus of party leaders. Candidates having winnability and whose names come in the party survey will be considered." Assembly polls in Rajasthan
The Supreme Court on Friday sought responses from former Gujarat minister Purnesh Modi and the state government on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's appeal challenging the high court verdict which dismissed his plea seeking a stay on his conviction in a defamation case over his "Modi surname" remark. A bench of Justices B R Gavai and P K Mishra issued notices to Purnesh Modi, who had filed a criminal defamation case in 2019 against Gandhi over his "How come all thieves have Modi as the common surname?" remark made during an election rally at Kolar in Karnataka on April 13, 2019, and the Gujarat government on Gandhi's appeal. "The limited question at this stage is whether the conviction deserves to be stayed," the bench observed. Senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, appearing for Gandhi, said the Congress leader has suffered for 111 days, lost one Parliament session and is about to lose another session. The apex court has posted the matter for further hearing on August 4. In his appeal f
A day after a video of two women being paraded naked in Manipur surfaced online, former Congress president Rahul Gandhi on Thursday said the issue is not that it's a shame for the country but the immense pain and trauma inflicted on the women of the state. Tension mounted in the hills of Manipur after a May 4 video surfaced online on Wednesday showing two women from one of the warring communities in Manipur's Kangpokpi district being paraded naked by a mob from the other side. Before the start of the Monsoon session of Parliament on Thursday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the incident has shamed 140 crore Indians, asserting that law will act with its full might and no guilty will be spared. In a tweet, Gandhi said, "Prime Minister, the issue is not that it's a shame for the country. The issue is the immense pain and trauma inflicted on the women of Manipur. Stop the violence immediately." Taking suo moto cognisance of the video, the Manipur Police had on Wednesday night registe
Condemning the incident in Manipur in which two women were paraded naked and molested by a mob in Manipur, Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav on Thursday wondered if Congress leader Rahul Gandhi can visit the northeastern state, why Prime Minister Narendra Modi cannot. The RJD leader alleged that innocent people are being killed in the ethnic strife-torn state. The incident that happened in Manipur is highly condemnable. It is shameful that the Supreme Court had to intervene in this matter as the BJP governments at the Centre and the state had," Yadav said. The Supreme Court on Thursday said it was "very deeply disturbed" by the video of two women being paraded naked in Manipur, terming it "simply unacceptable in a constitutional democracy". Taking cognisance of the video, a bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud asked the Centre and Manipur government to take immediate action. "Why has the PM not visited the state so far? If Congress leader Rahul Gandhi can visit
The post included a photo of Sonia Gandhi wearing an oxygen mask, with the caption 'Ma, the epitome of grace under pressure'
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An aircraft with Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi on board made an emergency landing at Bhopal airport on Tuesday evening, a police officer said. The plane made an emergency landing at the Bhopal airport, Bhopal police commissioner Harinarayan Chari Mishra told PTI. However, details like the reason behind the emergency landing of the aircraft and destination are not available. Mishra said the aircraft is likely to take off for onward journey at around 9.30 PM. Sonia Gandhi and Rahul attended the meeting of opposition parties in Bengaluru a few hours back. We are on the way to the airport after getting information about the emergency landing, senior Congress leader Shoba Oza said.
Setting the tone for their 2024 Lok Sabha campaign, 26 opposition parties on Tuesday formed a coalition --Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA)-- to unitedly take on the ruling NDA with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi asserting that the fight will be "between INDIA and Prime Minister Narendra Modi". Announcing the name of the opposition bloc at a press conference here after a nearly four-hour-long meeting of the 26 parties, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said,"We'll fight the 2024 Lok Sabha elections unitedly and we will come out with great success." He said a committee of 11 members will be set up for coordination, and a convenor will be selected at the next meeting in Mumbai. Kharge also said a secretariat will also be set up in Delhi for campaign management of the alliance and specific committees will be formed for separate issues. He said the dates for the Mumbai meeting will be announced soon. While Kharge evaded a direct reply on who would be the face o
The Supreme Court on Tuesday agreed to hear on July 21 an appeal of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi challenging the Gujarat High Court's July 7 verdict which dismissed his plea seeking a stay on his conviction in a defamation case over his "Modi surname" remark. A bench of Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and Justices PS Narasimha and Manoj Mishra agreed to hear the plea after senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, appearing for Gandhi, sought listing of the appeal on July 21 or July 24. The bench said it would hear it on July 21. In his appeal filed on July 15, Gandhi has said that if the judgment is not stayed, it would lead to throttling of free speech, expression, thought, and statement. He contended that if the high court verdict is not stayed it would contribute to the systematic, repetitive emasculation of democratic institutions and the consequent strangulation of democracy which would be gravely detrimental to the political climate and future of India. Purnesh Modi, a former ministe
Leaders of at least 26 Opposition parties will converge at a hotel in Bengaluru on July 17-18 as part of their efforts to present a united front against the BJP govt in the Centre
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Sunday said farmers are India's strength and many problems of the country could be solved "if we listen to them and understand their point of view". Gandhi shared on social media a video capturing his visit to paddy fields in Madina village of Haryana's Sonepat on July 8. The about 12-minute YouTube video shows him having a conversation with farmers and their families, ploughing the fields, planting paddy saplings and later breaking bread with the farmers on a string cot. "Farmers are the strength of India," he tweeted in Hindi, sharing a short clip from the video. "In Sonepat, Haryana, I met two farmers -- Sanjay Malik and Tasbir Kumar. They are childhood best friends and have been farming together for many years." "Together with them, we helped in the fields, sowed paddy, drove a tractor, and discussed many things. The women farmers of the village gave us love and respect like their own family members, and brought homemade food. "The farmers of In