Congress MP Rahul Gandhi surrendered before a Lucknow court on Tuesday afternoon in connection with a defamation case filed over his remarks on the Indian Army. Within five minutes of his surrender, the court granted him bail.
Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate Alok Verma granted bail to Gandhi on two personal bonds of Rs 20,000 each after his legal team submitted a bail application, which the court approved. Gandhi remained inside the courtroom for approximately 30 minutes.
He flew in from Delhi and headed straight to the MP-MLA court in Lucknow. The court had earlier summoned him for allegedly making objectionable comments about the Indian Army during his Bharat Jodo Yatra. Despite being summoned, Gandhi had failed to appear in the last five hearings, prompting the court to issue a fresh summons mandating his presence.
Following the bail order, Gandhi left the court premises and proceeded directly to Amausi Airport.
Gandhi’s lawyer, Pranshu Agrawal, had earlier requested an exemption from personal appearance, but the court rejected the plea and directed the Congress leader to appear in person. Tensions briefly flared outside the court when the convoy carrying Rajya Sabha MP Pramod Tiwari and Congress MLA Aradhana Mishra was stopped by police at the gate. After a brief argument, both leaders walked inside on foot.
The case against Rahul Gandhi was filed in August 2023 by retired Border Roads Organisation (BRO) Director Uday Shankar Srivastava. The complaint alleges that Gandhi made misleading and demoralizing remarks about the Indian Army during a speech on December 16, 2022, as part of his Bharat Jodo Yatra. Referring to a December 9, 2022 clash between Indian and Chinese troops, Gandhi had claimed that “Chinese soldiers were beating up Indian soldiers.”
Srivastava’s complaint argued that the statement was factually incorrect and misleading. He said it undermined the morale of Indian troops and hurt the sentiments of their families.
On December 12, 2022, the Indian Army had officially stated that Chinese troops attempted to transgress into Indian territory and were firmly confronted by Indian soldiers. While both sides sustained minor injuries during the skirmish, Indian troops successfully pushed the Chinese forces back.
The court has now granted Rahul Gandhi bail, but the case remains ongoing as it continues to stir debate over freedom of speech, national security, and the limits of political commentary.
