Thane: A court here on Friday imposed a cost of Rs 500 on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for delay in filing a written statement in a case of civil defamation filed against him by an RSS activist for linking the Sangh with the murder of journalist Gauri Lankesh.
There was a delay of 881 days on Gandhi's part in filing the written statement, and his lawyer Narayan Iyer had filed an application seeking condonation of the delay.
His client lives in Delhi, and being an MP, travels extensively which led to the delay, advocate Iyer argued. The magistrate's court condoned the delay and accepted the written statement, but also imposed a cost of Rs 500, Iyer told PTI.
About The Defamation Case
The defamation case has been filed by RSS activist Vivek Champanerkar, seeking damages of Rs one from the Congress leader. The next hearing is scheduled for February 15.
BJP,RSS Favour Ruling Country From Delhi
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday claimed that the BJP and RSS support the idea of governing the country from Delhi. The Congress, on the other hand, supports local governance and lays equal importance on all states and regions, he added.
Speaking at a public gathering at Gogamukh in Assam's Lakhimpur district on the second day of his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra in the state, Gandhi said his party does not favour the Centre being the sole deciding power.
"The BJP and RSS believe that Hindustan should be governed from Delhi, with one language and one leader. We disagree. Assam will not be governed from Delhi; it will be governed from Assam," he said.
Emphasising that the Congress values all states equally, Gandhi said that is why he initiated this march from Manipur in the east to Mumbai in the west.
"We chose Manipur because we wanted to send out the message to everyone that the Northeastern states are as important as other states. It is as important to conserve their history, language and culture as of any other place," he said.
Rahul's Swipe At PM Modi
He took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for not visiting Manipur even as the state continues to be rocked by ethnic strife since May last year.
"For the first time in history of India, a civil war-like situation is prevailing in a state. There has been violence since months, hatred is being spread, people are being killed, property burnt.
"But the PM has not visited the state even for a single time. He cannot go there as it will expose the political reality of the BJP," he claimed.
