Noida | Congress MP and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi has approached the Madhya Pradesh High Court seeking relief in a defamation case filed by Kartikeya Singh Chouhan, son of Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan.
The case relates to remarks allegedly made by Rahul Gandhi during a 2018 election rally in Jhabua, Madhya Pradesh. During the rally, Gandhi had referred to the Panama Papers leak while mentioning Kartikeya Singh’s name. Kartikeya later filed a defamation complaint, claiming that the statement harmed his reputation.
The complaint was filed before a special MP-MLA court in Bhopal, which issued summons directing Rahul Gandhi to appear personally in the matter. Gandhi then moved the Madhya Pradesh High Court, seeking quashing of the summons as well as the defamation proceedings.
In an application filed through his counsel, Rahul Gandhi expressed regret over the statement. According to court submissions, Gandhi stated that the remarks were not intended to refer to Kartikeya Singh Chouhan.
The matter was listed before Justice Pramod Kumar Agarwal, who is scheduled to hear the petition on Thursday. Gandhi’s side also submitted records from the lower court as directed by the High Court. Advocate Sankalp Kochhar appeared on behalf of the complainant.
The development has triggered a political reaction from the BJP. BJP IT cell head Amit Malviya criticized Rahul Gandhi on social media, alleging that the Congress leader has repeatedly made controversial statements and later expressed regret when challenged legally.
Malviya said that a leader of the opposition is expected to speak responsibly and accused Gandhi of making serious allegations without sufficient facts.
The High Court’s decision on Gandhi’s plea will be closely watched as the case continues to draw political attention ahead of the next hearing.
