Supreme Court Slams Rahul Gandhi Over Army, China Remarks
The Supreme Court strongly criticized Rahul Gandhi for his remarks on the Army and China, demanding concrete evidence and clarifying that sensitive matters belong in Parliament, not social media platforms
National News: The Supreme Court has taken a strong stand on the statement made by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi about the Indian Army during the Bharat Jodo Yatra. The Supreme Court asked in clear terms whether he has any concrete evidence or documents to prove this statement. This question came from Justice Dipankar Dutta when Rahul Gandhi's petition was being heard, in which he had challenged the summons of the lower court.
A true Indian would never make such a statement
During the hearing, Justice Dutta remarked, "If you are the leader of the opposition, should you make such statements on social media, or should you raise it in Parliament?" He asked, "How did you come to believe that China has occupied 2000 square meters of Indian territory? Do you have any reliable source or document for this?" The court also said that no person can make arbitrary statements on sensitive national issues just in the name of freedom of expression.
Relief from the Supreme Court for now
However, the Supreme Court has given some relief to Rahul Gandhi and has stayed the trial against him for the time being and has issued a notice in this matter and fixed the next hearing after three weeks. This means that the court, understanding the seriousness of the matter, wants to investigate further, but at the same time is giving the petitioner an opportunity to file a reply.
Background of the petition
The case pertains to a criminal petition filed by former Border Roads Organisation (BRO) director Uday Shankar Srivastava. He had alleged that during the Bharat Jodo Yatra, Rahul Gandhi had publicly commented that Chinese soldiers had beaten up Indian soldiers in the Galwan Valley, which was an insult to the country's army.
The Allahabad High Court had earlier rejected the relief
Earlier, the Allahabad High Court had refused to quash the summons to Rahul Gandhi, saying that freedom of expression also has its limits, and a sensitive institution like the Army cannot be defamed in such a manner on a public platform. The High Court had also said in its order that a public representative should be careful while speaking, especially when the matter is related to national security and the honour of the armed forces.
