Jun 07, 2024 06:52 AM IST
Newspaper ads by Congress, titled “Corruption rate card”, accused the Karnataka BJP of being a “40% Commission Sarkara (government)”.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi will appear before a special court in Bengaluru on Friday, June 7, in connection with a defamation case filed by the Karnataka Bharatiya Janata Party for issuing allegedly defamatory advertisements in mainstream newspapers. Rahul Gandhi was seen at the Delhi airport early morning, leaving for Bengaluru.
The court has asked Rahul Gandhi to appear before it on June 7 in connection with a defamation lawsuit brought by the Karnataka Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) regarding the publication of allegedly derogatory advertising in mainstream newspapers before the 2023 state assembly election.
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Rahul Gandhi to appear before court at 10:30 am
The Karnataka Congress said Rahul Gandhi will appear before the City Civil Court at 10:30am.
Following this, he will meet with the Congress’s newly elected MPs from the state and defeated candidates at Bharat Jodo Bhavan on Queens Road at 11:30am. Chief minister Siddaramaiah and deputy chief minister KPCC president DK Shivakumar will also be present, according to the party’s state unit.
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What is the case against Rahul Gandhi?
The advertisement, ahead of last year’s assembly polls, accused the BJP government in Karnataka of large-scale corruption during its 2019-2023 term.
The BJP’s complaint, filed in June 2023, claimed that false and reckless allegations were made in ads published on May 5, 2023, in all major Karnataka newspapers. These ads, titled “Corruption rate card,” accused BJP’s Basavaraj Bommai government of being a “40 per cent Commission Sarkara (government).”
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The complaint alleged that the ads were issued by the state unit Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee through its president, Shivakumar, and Siddaramaiah, the then Leader of the Opposition in the legislative assembly. It also highlighted that Rahul Gandhi shared this “defamatory advertisement” on his social media account on X.
On June 1, the court granted bail to Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar after they appeared in connection with the case. Judge K N Shivakumar set June 7 for Rahul Gandhi’s personal appearance. During the hearing, Gandhi’s counsel requested an exemption from appearance, which the complainant’s side opposed, arguing against repeated exemptions.
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