Punjab Newsline | Sultanpur
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was acquitted on Monday by the special MP-MLA court in Sultanpur in a defamation case arising from his alleged remarks about Union Home Minister Amit Shah. The case was filed by BJP leader Vijay Mishra in August 2018.
The complaint relates to an alleged statement made by Rahul Gandhi during a press conference in Bengaluru on May 8, 2018. He reportedly said, “The party that talks about honesty has a president who is accused of murder.”
Following the court’s decision, Congress workers gathered outside the court premises and celebrated the verdict by dancing to the beats of drums, bursting fireworks and raising slogans in support of Rahul Gandhi.
Court Pronounces Verdict Within Minutes
Rahul Gandhi reached the special MP-MLA court in Sultanpur at 11:12 am on Monday and entered the courtroom at 11:16 am. He came out of the court at around 11:35 am.
According to the available details, the court delivered its verdict within approximately 16 minutes. During the proceedings, the court reportedly reprimanded the complainant’s side for around 10 minutes.
SIT Formed to Investigate Convoy Accident
Earlier on Monday, five vehicles in Rahul Gandhi’s convoy collided on the Purvanchal Expressway. An ambulance was among the vehicles involved in the accident. Rahul Gandhi was reported to be safe.
Following the incident, a three-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) was constituted on the directions of the Uttar Pradesh Director General of Police (DGP) to investigate the circumstances surrounding the collision.
The team is headed by Lucknow Range Inspector General Kiran S. Its other members are Sultanpur Additional Superintendent of Police Brij Narayan Singh and Deputy Superintendent of Police (Traffic) Ram Krishna Chaturvedi.
The SIT will investigate the incident and recommend measures to prevent similar accidents in the future. It has been directed to submit a detailed report to police headquarters at the earliest.
