A defamation suit against Rahul Gandhi, filed over his comments regarding the 2020 Hathras gangrape case, has been adjourned, raising questions about the legal proceedings and political implications.
The hearing in a defamation suit filed against Congress MP Rahul Gandhi for his remarks on the 2020 Hathras gangrape case was on Monday deferred to May 2, lawyers said.
The matter, being heard in an MP-MLA court here, could not be taken up as the presiding judge, Deepak Nath Saraswati, has been transferred, they said.
The hearing could not be taken up the last time, on March 16, as the judge was on leave.
The Hathras case refers to the alleged gangrape of a 19-year-old Dalit woman, who died in September 2020. She was cremated outside the village by police in the middle of the night, allegedly against the wishes of her family.
According to Advocate Munna Singh Pundir, representing the complainants, the case will now be heard in a new court on May 2.
Gandhi's counsel Bhagwati Prasad said that an objection petition had already been filed on the previous date of hearing, and the proceedings could not take place on Monday as the officer concerned was not available.
The defamation complaint pertains to alleged remarks made by Gandhi during a visit to Boolgarhi village on December 12, 2024, where he had allegedly stated that the accused in the case were "roaming free" while the victim's family was confined to their home.
The complainants are three men -- Ravi, Ram Kumar alias Ramu, and Lovkush -- who were acquitted of rape charges after a two-year trial. Their counsel claimed that the remarks were defamatory and hurt their reputation.
Pundir said three separate cases have been filed against Gandhi on behalf of the acquitted men, and a legal notice seeking damages of Rs 1.5 crore -- Rs 50 lakh for each -- had also been sent to him earlier.
He alleged that while one accused, Sandeep, was named in the original case, the three others were falsely implicated based on statements from the victim's family, and were later acquitted following a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation.