New Delhi: In a significant development, the Supreme Court of India on Monday stayed the defamation proceedings against Congress MP Rahul Gandhi in connection with a 2018 defamation case. The case, filed before a Jharkhand court, involves Gandhi’s remarks referring to Union Home Minister Amit Shah (then BJP president) as a “murder accused.”
A bench led by Justice Vikram Nath issued a notice on Gandhi’s appeal, challenging the Jharkhand High Court order of February 2024, which had refused to quash the defamation case. The court granted a period of four weeks to the state and the private complainant, BJP leader Navin Jha, to file responses.
Until further orders, the bench, also comprising Justice Sandeep Mehta, directed that all further proceedings before the trial court remain stayed.
Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, representing Gandhi, argued that the settled law in defamation cases requires the person aggrieved to directly allege defamation, and that proxy complaints should not be allowed. Singhvi emphasized that there are seven judgments supporting this view.
On the other hand, senior advocate Mahesh Jethmalani, representing Navin Jha, requested additional time to respond to the appeal.