V.D. Savarkar is a freedom fighter, will file case against Rahul Gandhi if he continues making derogatory remarks against Savarkar: Supreme Court

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court of India has cautioned Congress leader Rahul Gandhi against making derogatory comments about V.D. Savarkar, who is acknowledged as a freedom fighter. The bench, while hearing Gandhi's plea to quash a defamation summons, stated that if such remarks continue, it could initiate suo motu proceedings.

The court made these remarks while hearing a petition filed by Rahul Gandhi seeking the quashing of a defamation summons issued in connection with a comment he made about Savarkar during the 2022 Bharat Jodo Yatra. The defamation case, filed in a Lucknow Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate (ACJM) court, was based on Rahul’s alleged defamatory statements about Savarkar.

Although the Supreme Court stayed the proceedings in the Lucknow court, it did not hold back in its criticism against Rahul Gandhi.

“We will not allow defamatory remarks against freedom fighters. These are the people who gave us our independence. Is this how we speak about them?” questioned the bench comprising Justices Dipankar Datta and Manoj Misra. “Savarkar was a leading figure. He was a political leader. Why create such controversies? In Maharashtra, he is deeply revered,” the court pointed out.

Following this, senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, appearing for Rahul Gandhi, assured the court that his client would not make any further derogatory remarks about Savarkar.

Will you also call Gandhi a British servant?

The court then questioned whether Rahul Gandhi was referring to the phrase “your obedient servant” that Savarkar used in letters to the British Viceroy. “Does Rahul Gandhi know that even Mahatma Gandhi used similar language in letters to the Viceroy?” the bench asked.

“Does Rahul Gandhi know that his grandmother, Indira Gandhi, had praised Savarkar as a freedom fighter?” the court continued. “Even if one is not fully aware of Indian history or geography, this is not how freedom fighters should be treated,” it added.

The Lucknow case:

The defamation case in question was filed by advocate Nripendra Pandey in response to Rahul’s statement during the Bharat Jodo Yatra that Savarkar cooperated with the British and even received a pension from them. In Rahul’s petition, the Supreme Court has now asked for notice to be issued to the complainant.