Pune court asks Rahul Gandhi to 'appear' in defamation case filed by Savarkar's kin
Pune, May 31: A court here on Thursday issued an order directing Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to appear before it in a complaint filed by Vinayak Damodar Savarkar's grandnephew accusing him of defaming the Hindutva ideologue, the petitioner's lawyer claimed.
While Gandhi was not represented by any lawyer during the hearing, the detailed order was yet to be made available.
The order was passed by judicial magistrate (first class) Akshi Jain.
It came two days after Pune police stated in a report that there was prima facie truth in the complaint filed Satyaki Savarkar who alleged that the Congress leader defamed the late freedom fighter in a speech made in London in 2023.
The order stated that the next hearing would be on August 19, 2024, and the stage was "appearance".
Advocate Sangram Kolhatkar, lawyer of Satyaki Savarkar, claimed that the judge had asked Gandhi to appear before the court on that date.
It was not clear immediately if the Congress leader was expected to be present, or can appear through his lawyer.
As per the complaint, Rahul Gandhi claimed in his speech that V D Savarkar had written in a book that he and his friends once beat up a Muslim man, and Savarkar felt happy.
Satyaki Savarkar claimed that no such incident had ever taken place, and V D Savarkar never wrote any such thing anywhere.
He filed a complaint under Indian Penal Code sections 499 and 500 (defamation), following which the court asked the Vishrambaug police station to verify the proof submitted by Satyaki Savarkar and submit a report.
As per advocate Kolhatkar, the police stated in their report, submitted on Monday, that V D Savarkar was not found to have written about any such incident anywhere, and yet Rahul Gandhi made the claim in his speech.
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Man jumps to death from 22nd floor of posh Noida society; depression suspected
Noida (PTI): A 37-year-old man allegedly died by suicide after jumping from the 22nd floor of a posh residential society in Sector 107 here, police said on Monday.
The incident took place on Sunday in Prateek Edifice Society under the jurisdiction of the Sector-39 police station. The deceased has been identified as Sajjal Mehrotra, a company director who lived in the society with his family.
"On Sunday afternoon, he jumped from the balcony of his flat on the 22nd floor," a police official said.
Family members and security guards rushed him to a nearby hospital, where doctors declared him dead, police said, adding that no suicide note has been found.
Prima facie, the deceased was suffering from depression, officials said, adding that other aspects of the case are being investigated.
The body has been sent for post-mortem and further legal formalities are underway.
Police said the man got married about 10 years ago and is survived by his wife and two children. No complaint has been received from the family in connection with the incident.
(Assistance for overcoming suicidal thoughts is available on the state’s health helpline 104, Tele-MANAS 14416.)
