Rahul Gandhi Seeks ‘Preventive Protection’ Over Life Threat During Savarkar Defamation Case Hearing
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday informed a Pune Court that he faces a threat to life due to his recent political battles and the lineage of complainant Satyaki Savarkar in a defamation case filed against him.
The Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition submitted an application before the special court for cases against MPs and MLAs during the hearing of the case filed by Satyaki Savarkar, the grand-nephew of Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, against Gandhi. The trial for the case has not yet begun.
The defamation case pertains to comments allegedly made by Rahul Gandhi against V D Savarkar, the freedom fighter and Hindutva ideologue. Gandhi claimed that some BJP MPs threatened him, saying he could “meet the same fate” as his grandmother, former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, over his remarks against Savarkar.
Gandhi’s lawyer, Advocate Milind Pawar, stated in the application that Satyaki Savarkar admitted to being a direct descendant, through maternal lineage, of Nathuram Godse and Gopal Godse, the principal accused in the assassination of Mahatma Gandhi.
The Congress party has also filed a separate application in court to place certain political developments on record, giving the judiciary a broader context. “For the past 15 days, Rahul Gandhi has been leading a protest against the Election Commission. During this agitation, there was a verbal exchange between the Prime Minister and Rahul Gandhi over the term ‘Hindutva’—all of which is on record,” Pawar said.
The application argued that, given the documented history of violent and anti-constitutional tendencies linked to the complainant’s lineage and the current political climate, there is a “clear, reasonable, and substantial apprehension” that Gandhi could face harm, wrongful implication, or targeting by persons subscribing to Vinayak Damodar Savarkar’s ideology.
The court has already granted bail to Gandhi in the matter.
Responding to the plea, Satyaki Savarkar called it frivolous and accused Gandhi of trying to delay the trial. “The facts mentioned in the application by Gandhi have nothing to do with the present case,” he said.
Savarkar’s complaint alleges that in a speech in London in March 2023, Rahul Gandhi claimed that V D Savarkar had written in a book that he and several friends once beat up a Muslim man and felt happy about it. She contends that no such account exists in Savarkar’s published works and seeks Gandhi’s conviction under Section 500 IPC along with compensation under Section 357 CrPC for allegedly false and defamatory statements.
