The remarks came after the court was informed about the complainant’s plea for an early hearing. A bench headed by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and comprising Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana said the complainant would have to make a formal request for early listing.
“Let us follow the procedure. File an application seeking early hearing. Everyone is equal before us. Please file an application for early hearing. We will take it up,” the bench observed.
The matter was mentioned before the Supreme Court by senior advocate Gaurav Bhatia, appearing for complainant Uday Shankar Srivastava, former Director of the Border Roads Organisation (BRO).
Bhatia sought an early hearing, stating that Gandhi’s appeal against the summons had not been taken up for five months and arguing that Gandhi was not a VVIP.
“He (Rahul Gandhi) is not a VVIP. The matter was listed five months ago also and was not taken up. This does not augur well for the institution as well,” Bhatia said while seeking an early hearing in the case against the Leader of Opposition.
Srivastava, in his complaint, alleged that Gandhi had irresponsibly stated that “Chinese soldiers are beating up Indian Army personnel in Arunachal Pradesh” while criticising the government over the Line of Actual Control (LAC).
The complaint relates to remarks allegedly made by Gandhi on December 16, 2022, concerning the December 9, 2022 clash between Indian and Chinese armies. Srivastava alleged that the remarks were derogatory and defamatory towards the Indian military forces.
Earlier, while hearing Gandhi’s appeal seeking a stay on the summons issued against him, a Supreme Court bench comprising Justices Dipankar Datta and Augustine George Masih stayed the proceedings. The bench, however, questioned why Gandhi had not raised the issue in Parliament instead of on social media and asked whether his statements were based on credible material.
Gandhi had approached the Supreme Court with an appeal against an Allahabad High Court order that upheld the summons issued by a Lucknow court in connection with the case.
The Supreme Court’s direction on Wednesday places the request for an early hearing within the court’s prescribed procedure, while the proceedings against Gandhi remain subject to the legal process surrounding his appeal and the underlying defamation complaint.
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