Supreme Court slams Rahul Gandhi for defaming Indian Army after Galwan Valley clash, says ‘a true Indian’ wouldn’t say such things: Here is what happened
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was severely criticised by the Supreme Court on 4th August for his comments attacking the Indian Army on 16th December 2022, during the “Bharat Jodo Yatra.” He claimed, “Chinese soldiers are thrashing Indian Army personnel in Arunachal Pradesh.”
The statement was made after the two sides clashed in Arunachal Pradesh. The Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha approached the apex court to contest a defamation lawsuit brought against him for the same.
The bench consisting of Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice Augustine George Masih questioned the veracity of his remarks and pointed out that they were unacceptable for a “true Indian.” Afterward, the criminal proceedings against him were halted by the the bench.
However, he was reprimanded by the court for using social media to talk bout such matters rather than raising them in Parliament. He was also admonished for the misuse of freedom of expression and for making comments without reliable sources. “You are Leader of Opposition, say things in Parliament, not on social media,” the court lashed out.
“Why in social media post and not in Parliament? How do you get to know when 2000 square kilometre was acquired by China? Were you there? Do you have any credible material? If you were a true Indian, you would not say all these things. When there is a conflict across border, can you say all this? Just because you have 19(1)(a) (freedom of speech) you cannot say anything,” the court chastised.
Senior Advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi who was representing the Gandhi scion argued that the remarks were made in the public interest and were political in character. “If he can’t say these things how can he be the Leader of Opposition,” he asked.
Singhvi contended that the allegation was politically motivated and read out actual comments regarding the border confrontation. According to him, a third party cannot use the comments as justification for a defamation lawsuit.
“But you cannot harass somebody like this with defamation charges. High Court says he (complainant) was not a person aggrieved but defamed. High Court reasoning was novel was not correct,” Singhvi claimed. He further alleged, “There is a technique now, become an MP and file defamation for any criticism.”
He, however, failed to convince the judges. “Why would you make these statements without anything? Just because you’re a responsible leader of the Opposition, it does not mean you say such things,” the court highlighted.
The Supreme Court then issued notice and ordered an interim hold on further proceedings in the defamation case after the harsh observations. The matter will be heard after three weeks. Furthermore, the Uttar Pradesh government and the complainant in the case were also served with notice by the top court.
Retired BRO official Udai Shanker Srivastava had filed the lawsuit, charging that the Lok Sabha MP made a number of disparaging comments about the army during the stalemate along the India-China border. His statement was deemed derogatory and discouraging to the Army, according to the complaint.
The parliamentarian’s plea was previously denied by the Allahabad High Court on 29th May. Judge Subhash Vidyarthi of the Allahabad High Court had noted that the right to free expression does not extend to the ability to slander the Army. The Lucknow MP/MLA Special Court awarded bail to Gandhi on 15th July.
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