Rahul Gandhi entitled to speedy decision on defamation complaint: Bombay HC

Rahul Gandhi/ PTI

The Bombay High Court has ruled that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has a legitimate right to a speedy decision on a 2014 defamation complaint involving alleged remarks against the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). In an order dated July 12, Justice Prithviraj Chavan noted that Article 21 of the Constitution guarantees everyone the right to a fast trial, emphasising the importance of a free and fair trial, reported PTI.

According to the report, the Bombay High Court's statements came as it granted Gandhi's plea to overturn a magistrate's judgement that allowed an RSS worker to submit additional papers in the ongoing defamation case.

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Rajesh Kunte, an RSS worker, filed a defamation complaint in 2014, stating that Gandhi made false and defamatory claims during a speech, accusing the RSS of being responsible for Mahatma Gandhi's killing.

According to the report, in 2023, the magistrate court in Bhiwandi, Maharashtra, permitted Kunte to submit a transcript of Rahul Gandhi's speech, which was part of Gandhi's 2014 petition to invalidate the summons issued to him.

Kunte claimed that by releasing the transcript in his petition, Gandhi "unambiguously owned up to the speech and its contents." Gandhi appealed the magistrate's decision to the Bombay High Court, the report added.

Reportedly, Justice Chavan criticised Kunte's actions, stating that they were causing unnecessary delays. The HC emphasised that Article 21 requires a swift trial, and justice must be seen to be done. The court ruled that the magistrate's order violated criminal jurisprudence rules.

The Bombay High Court noted, "The respondent No. 2 (Kunte) is leaving no stone unturned to thwart the legitimate right of the petitioner (Rahul Gandhi) to get the complaint decided on merits as expeditiously as possible in view of Article 21 of the Constitution of India which provides speedy trial."

"It is difficult to abstruse the conduct of the complainant. Free and fair trial is a sine qua non (a thing that is absolutely necessary) of Article 21 of the Constitution of India. It is trite law that justice should not only be done but it should be seen to have been done," it added.

The HC ordered the magistrate to handle the matter quickly, as it had been pending for a decade. The court stressed that the transcript was provided to the petition solely for the purpose of trying to quash the case and should not be interpreted as Gandhi's admission, the report added.

In his petition, Gandhi stated that a previous high court judgement in 2021 barred Kunte from filing new documents. Despite this, the magistrate allowed the submission, which Gandhi said was illegal and prejudicial.

With PTI inputs