Lucknow Court Summons Rahul Gandhi Over Alleged Remarks Against Indian Army

Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi has been summoned by a court in Lucknow in connection with alleged derogatory remarks he made about the Indian Army during his Bharat Jodo Yatra. The summons were issued by the Lucknow MP-MLA Court, which handles cases against Members of Parliament and Members of Legislative Assemblies, and Gandhi is required to appear in court during the last week of March 2025.

The defamation case was filed by Uday Shankar Srivastava, the former director of the Border Roads Organisation (BRO), based on Gandhi's comments. The remarks, made during the Bharat Jodo Yatra in December 2022, referred to the Indian Army in a manner that some perceived as derogatory.

Specifically, Gandhi allegedly stated that "Chinese soldiers are beating up Indian Army personnel in Arunachal Pradesh," in a critique of the government's handling of tensions with China along the Line of Actual Control (LAC). The statement sparked intense political controversy, with several BJP leaders accusing Gandhi of being anti-national and linking his family to alleged Chinese influence, particularly through the Rajiv Gandhi Foundation.

Despite the criticism, Gandhi persisted in targeting the government over issues related to China. The controversy surrounding his remarks intensified further when, in March 2023, he was temporarily barred from attending Parliament after being convicted in a defamation case related to comments about Prime Minister Narendra Modi's surname. The Gujarat court sentenced him to a two-year jail term, though the sentence was suspended. Nevertheless, the timing of the conviction raised questions of political motivation, as it led to his disqualification from Parliament. Opposition leaders called the move a conspiracy to discredit the Congress leader.

Subsequently, Gandhi received a reprieve from the Supreme Court, which put his conviction on hold. The apex court noted that the trial judge had imposed the maximum possible sentence of two years, and had the sentence been one day shorter, it would not have resulted in disqualification. The court's decision has offered some relief to Gandhi as he faces continued legal challenges.