Bhopal:
The Madhya Pradesh High Court at Jabalpur on Thursday closed the criminal defamation proceedings against Congress leader and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi in the case filed by Kartikeya Singh Chouhan, son of Union Minister and former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan.
The case had its roots in a campaign speech in Jhabua on October 29, 2018, where Gandhi had allegedly linked Kartikeya’s name to the Panama Papers controversy.
The remark had triggered a political storm in Madhya Pradesh. Shivraj Singh Chouhan had reacted sharply. Kartikeya had moved the special MP/MLA court in Bhopal, and a criminal defamation complaint was filed under Section 500 of the Indian Penal Code. Years later, the trial court took cognisance of the offence and summoned Gandhi, prompting him to approach the High Court under Section 528 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita.
But in the High Court, the case took a decisive turn. Gandhi placed on record a statement saying that his reference to Kartikeya Singh Chouhan had been erroneous. He stated that the very next day, on October 30, 2018, he had publicly clarified that he had intended to refer to the son of the then Chief Minister of Chhattisgarh in connection with the Panama Papers, and not Kartikeya or his father, who was then the Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh.
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The statement also recorded that Gandhi stood by his public clarification and expressed regret over the erroneous reference. This became the turning point in the case.
On Kartikeya Singh Chouhan’s behalf, a written reply was filed before the High Court stating that, in view of the clarification and regret expressed by Gandhi, the complainant did not intend to escalate the matter further. The respondent’s side requested that the proceedings before both the High Court and the trial court be closed after making Gandhi’s statement part of the final order.
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Justice Pramod Kumar Agrawal accepted the position taken by both sides. The High Court recorded Gandhi’s regret, noted the reply filed on behalf of Kartikeya Singh Chouhan, and ordered that the proceedings be closed. More significantly, the court also directed that the proceedings pending before the JMFC/Special Judge MP-MLA court in Bhopal would also stand closed.
The order brings down the curtain on one of Madhya Pradesh’s long-running political defamation battles, a case that began as an election-stage attack, turned into a prestige fight between two political families, and finally ended with a clarification, regret and closure.
