Sultanpur (UP) (PTI): The hearing in the defamation case against Congress MP Rahul Gandhi was adjourned again due to the continuing strike of lawyers.

Plaintiff Vijay Mishra's counsel Santosh Kumar Pandey said the special MP-MLA judge Shubham Verma set January 30 as the next date of hearing to complete the cross-examination in the case.

Mishra, a local BJP politician, filed a defamation complaint against Gandhi in 2018 in the court alleging that during the Karnataka elections, the Congress leader made an offensive remark about BJP leader Amit Shah which hurt his sentiments.

The case was pending for five years, and when Gandhi failed to appear, the court issued a warrant in December, 2023, summoning him.

While Gandhi surrendered in court in February, 2024, his statement was recorded on July 26, 2024.

The special magistrate granted him bail on two sureties of Rs 25,000 each.

During his appearance in court, Gandhi claimed innocence and said a political conspiracy was being plotted against him.

The court subsequently directed the plaintiff to present evidence.

Though a hearing was scheduled on December 16, 2024, it was deferred due to the judge's absence. On January 2, 2025, when the cross-examination was not completed, the court set the next date for January 10, 2025. However, the hearing was rescheduled for January 22, 2025 due to the lawyers' strike.

Mumbai (PTI): Bollywood star Saif Ali Khan has met auto-rickshaw driver Bhajan Singh Rana, who rushed him to hospital after he was injured in the knife attack at his home in Mumbai, and thanked him for the help.

The actor also gave the driver some money and assured all help to him whenever needed.

Khan (54) was repeatedly stabbed with a knife by an intruder inside his 12th-floor apartment in the upscale Bandra area in the wee hours of January 16.

The actor suffered multiple stab injuries in the attack and underwent an emergency surgery at the Lilavati Hospital. He returned home on Tuesday.

Khan met Singh Rana on Tuesday at the hospital before getting discharged.

"I met him (Saif) yesterday at the hospital. He called to thank me, to help him reach the hospital. He praised me. I got the blessings from him and his family," the auto-rickshaw driver told PTI.

"He (Khan) introduced me to his mother (Sharmila Tagore), and I touched her feet. He gave me (money) whatever he felt was right, and said whenever I need help he will be there," Singh Rana said.

The intruder, Mohammad Shariful Islam Shehzad, a Bangladeshi national who had illegally entered India and changed his name to Vijay Das, was held on Sunday from adjoining Thane city.

A preliminary investigation suggests the accused had entered the actor's home intending to commit theft, according to police.

He gained entry into the actor's building here by scaling its compound wall and went inside the main entrance after finding the security guards asleep, the police earlier said.