NEW DELHI: The Uttar Pradesh government has told the Supreme Court that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is deliberately spreading hatred through pre-planned actions, referring to his alleged remarks against freedom fighter Veer Savarkar during the Bharat Jodo Yatra in 2022.
The government made this claim in an affidavit filed in response to Gandhi's Special Leave Petition (SLP), which seeks to quash a summons issued by a Lucknow lower court based on a criminal complaint by lawyer Nripendra Pandey.
A two-judge bench of the top court, comprising Justice Dipankar Datta and Justice Manmohan, is scheduled to hear the matter. In its previous hearing on 25 April, the Supreme Court had stayed the Allahabad High Court's order refusing to quash the summons and had directed the UP government to file a response.
The Yogi Adityanath-led government, in its affidavit, defended the summons and urged the court to dismiss Gandhi's appeal, stating, "All the allegations are supported by the investigation, which indicates deliberate spreading of hatred through pre-planned actions." The affidavit claimed that the magistrate had thoroughly reviewed the case file, statements, and investigation report before issuing the summoning order under Sections 153A (promoting enmity between groups) and 505 (statements conducive to public mischief) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
The affidavit described the Allahabad High Court's decision as legally sound and maintained that the apex court should not interfere.
During a previous hearing, the Supreme Court had criticised Gandhi’s remarks on Savarkar, calling them “irresponsible” and cautioning him against making such statements in the future. “Let us not mock our freedom fighters,” the bench had warned, adding that further comments of this nature could attract suo motu action.
The court also drew attention to historical correspondence, asking Gandhi whether he was aware that even Mahatma Gandhi had once signed off as “your faithful servant” in letters to the British, and questioned whether similar logic would then brand the Father of the Nation as a servant of the British.
The controversy stems from Gandhi's alleged remark during a rally in Maharashtra’s Akola district on 17 November 2022, where he referred to Savarkar as a “British servant who received a pension.” This led Advocate Pandey to file a criminal complaint in Lucknow, alleging that Gandhi had insulted Savarkar and incited social disharmony.
The lower court, while issuing the summons, stated that the remarks had spread hatred and ill-will in society. Gandhi’s challenge to this order was dismissed by Justice Subhash Vidyarthi of the Allahabad High Court on 4 April this year, who noted that Gandhi could instead pursue a revision petition under Section 397 of the Code of Criminal Procedure.
With no relief from the High Court, Gandhi has now sought intervention from the Supreme Court.
