Sultanpur: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi appeared before an MP-MLA court here on July 26 in a defamation case and said it was filed to gain “cheap publicity”.
Mr. Gandhi, who appeared before Special Judge Shubham Verma, said he never gave a statement against anyone which could lead to a case of defamation, his lawyer Kashi Prasad Shukla told reporters.
Local BJP leader Vijay Mishra filed the case on August 4, 2018, against Mr. Gandhi for making alleged objectionable remarks against the then BJP president and current Home Minister Amit Shah.
The court fixed August 12 as the next date of hearing in the matter when the statement of the petitioner will be recorded. Sources said Mr. Gandhi need not appear in the court on that date.
Advocate Santosh Kumar Pandey, representing Mishra, said Gandhi recorded his statement before the judge and the evidence will be presented on August 12.
Earlier, Mr. Gandhi had halted his ‘Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra’ in Amethi on February 20 this year and appeared in court, which granted him bail.
