The Bombay High Court on Tuesday reserved its verdict on a plea filed by Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi seeking quashing of a defamation case against him over remarks concerning Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Justice N R Borkar heard the matter before reserving judgment.
Origin Of The Case
The criminal proceedings were initiated by the Metropolitan Magistrate Court at Girgaon on August 28, 2019, following a defamation complaint filed by Mahesh Hukumchand Shrishrimal, a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party.
The complainant alleged that in September 2018, Gandhi addressed a rally in Rajasthan and made defamatory statements against Prime Minister Modi. It was claimed that as a result of those remarks, Modi was trolled by various news channels and on social media platforms.
The magistrate passed an order on August 28, 2019 summoning Gandhi to appear before the court.
Challenge Before The High Court
Gandhi challenged the summons in the High Court after receiving it in July 2021.
In his petition, Gandhi contended that the complaint was frivolous, vexatious and motivated by the sole purpose of advancing the complainant’s latent political agenda.
His counsel referred to Section 199(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), which stipulates that a sessions court is required to take cognisance of an offence where it is alleged against a public servant in respect of conduct in the discharge of public functions.
It was argued that, in view of this provision, there was a legal bar preventing Shrishrimal from filing the complaint.
The petition also cited Explanation 2 under Section 499 of the Indian Penal Code, submitting that a political party is not identified as a group of persons eligible to file a defamation plea. Gandhi’s counsel argued that Shrishrimal could not have filed the complaint in a representative capacity.
On these grounds, Gandhi sought quashing of the magistrate’s order.
Complainant’s Stand
Opposing the petition, Shrishrimal argued that he had established a prima facie case by deposing in support of his complaint and submitting evidence.
He maintained that the magistrate had scrutinised the material placed on record before issuing process against Gandhi.
Shrishrimal further contended that he was an aggrieved person in his own right and had filed the complaint in his capacity as a member of the ‘BJP Maharashtra Pradesh Committee’.
