Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday was granted bail by a special court here in connection with a case filed by the BJP’s Karnataka unit for issuing “defamatory” advertisements in mainstream newspapers.
As reported by PTI, the advertisement ahead of Assembly polls last year accused the then BJP government in the state of indulging in large-scale corruption during its 2019-2023 rule.
The court had on June one granted bail to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar, who is also the State Congress chief, after they appeared before it in connection with the defamation case, PTI reported.
Judge K N Shivakumar had directed Gandhi to appear before the court on June seven without fail.
In February, the Congress leader attended court proceedings related to the defamation case and was granted bail.
The complaint against Gandhi was lodged by BJP leader Vijay Mishra. Last December, a warrant was issued against Gandhi, prompting him to suspend his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra in Amethi and appear in court on February 20, where he obtained bail.
The complaint stemmed from remarks Gandhi made during a press conference in Bengaluru in May 2018, during the Karnataka elections. Gandhi’s comments referred to the BJP’s claim of upholding honest politics despite having a party president who was accused in a murder case.
Amit Shah was the BJP president at the time of Gandhi’s statement.
Four years before Gandhi’s remarks, Shah was acquitted by a special CBI court in Mumbai in connection with a 2005 fake encounter case during his tenure as Minister of State for Home in Gujarat.
(With inputs from PTI)
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Published: 07 Jun 2024, 11:21 AM IST
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