Jharkhand court issues non-bailable warrant against Rahul Gandhi in defamation case

The court rejected Gandhi's lawyer's plea seeking an exemption from personal appearance.

Filed by BJP leader Pratap Katiyar, the case is related to Gandhi's 2018 remarks against Amit Shah, who was then the party president.

In his speech, Gandhi had allegedly said that even someone facing "charges of murder" could become the president of the BJP.

Alleging that Gandhi's remark was defamatory and insulted all BJP workers, Katiyar filed a case against him on July 9, 2018, before the Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) court in Chaibasa.

Following an order from the Jharkhand High Court, the defamation case was transferred to the MP-MLA court in Ranchi in February 2020.

Subsequently, the case was sent back to the MP-MLA court in Chaibasa, where the magistrate took cognisance of the matter and issued a summons to the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha.

Despite repeated summons by the court, Gandhi skipped appearances.

In April 2022, a bailable warrant was issued. Gandhi had then approached the Jharkhand High Court seeking a stay on the warrant. The plea was disposed of on March 20, 2024.

After the hearings resumed, Gandhi's counsel once again requested to exempt him from personal appearance. However, the plea was turned down by the Chaibasa court.

A defamation case against Rahul Gandhi is also under trial in the Sultanpur court. On May 17, the hearing in the case could not take place as there was a workshop for lawyers.