Karnataka High Court stays defamation case against Rahul Gandhi
Bengaluru: The Karnataka High Court on Friday stayed proceedings in a defamation case filed by the BJP against Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over allegations of corruption during the BJP government’s tenure in the state.
Justice M. Nagaprasanna issued the stay while hearing Rahul Gandhi’s plea to quash the case. The court also issued a notice to the BJP, seeking its response to the petition.
The case was filed in May 2023 by BJP leader S. Keshava Prasad against Rahul Gandhi, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, and Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar. The complaint pertained to allegations made by the Congress during the 2023 Karnataka Assembly election campaign, accusing the BJP government of taking a 40% commission from contractors for awarding work contracts during its tenure from 2019 to 2023. The BJP claimed these accusations were baseless and defamatory, targeting then Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai and other party leaders.
The High Court has scheduled the next hearing for February 20.
Earlier, on June 7, 2023, a Bengaluru trial court had granted bail to Rahul Gandhi in the case. He had appeared before the court on June 7, 2023, in response to summons issued on June 1, 2023, with Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar also attending the same hearing. Both leaders were granted bail on the same day.
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Virat Kohli, KL Rahul likely to miss upcoming Ranji Trophy matches
Bengaluru: Star batters Virat Kohli and KL Rahul are expected to miss the upcoming round of the Ranji Trophy, as both have reportedly informed the BCCI's medical team about carrying injuries. As a result, neither will be able to represent their respective state teams in the next round of the tournament, set to begin on January 23.
According to ESPNCricinfo, Kohli had neck pain and had taken an injection on January 8, three days after the Border-Gavaskar Trophy ended in Sydney. Kohli told the BCCI medical staff that he was still experiencing pain, ruling him out of Delhi's game against Saurashtra in Rajkot.
KL Rahul is still recovering from an elbow niggle and will likely miss Karnataka’s Ranji Trophy match against Punjab. He has conveyed to the BCCI medical staff his concern about the issue, and they are monitoring him currently, PTI reported.
However, both the batters have a chance to play in the season's last final round, starting on January 30.
Meanwhile, the BCCI recently unveiled a stringent set of 10-point disciplinary guidelines. They have made it compulsory for each centrally-contracted player to represent their state teams in domestic cricket to remain eligible for selection in the national team and for central contracts.
The board also stated that if any player is unavailable, he needs permission from the national chairman of selectors, Ajit Agarkar and head coach Gautam Gambhir.
