The Allahabad High Court has dismissed a petition filed by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi challenging an order of the MP/MLA Special Court in Varanasi. The order was connected to a statement Gandhi made in the United States in 2024 about the religious freedom of Sikhs in India.
The high court has reportedly rejected Gandhi’s revision plea against the Varanasi court’s decision to admit a petition filed against him. The move clears the way for the case to proceed before the MP/MLA Court in Varanasi.
The case stems from Gandhi’s 2024 visit to the US, during which he made comments that drew political backlash. Referring to the rights of Sikhs in India, Gandhi had said: “The fight is about whether he, as a Sikh, is going to be allowed to wear a turban in India; or whether, he, as a Sikh, will be allowed to wear a kada in India; or whether he, as a Sikh, is allowed to go to a Gurudwara. That’s what the fight is about.”
Following the remarks, Nageshwar Mishra, a resident of Varanasi, approached the court seeking an FIR against the Congress leader.
Court Proceedings So Far
In November 2024, the additional chief judicial magistrate (ACJM) dismissed the application, holding that the remarks were delivered in the US and therefore outside its jurisdiction.
ALSO READ: 100% tariff on branded pharmaceuticals: What Trump’s latest salvo means for India
However, on July 21 this year, the special judge (MP/MLA) allowed Mishra’s revision plea, directing the ACJM to rehear the matter. Gandhi later moved the Allahabad High Court in August, arguing that the special court’s decision was “wrong, illegal and without jurisdiction.”
With the high court’s dismissal of his petition, the proceedings in the Varanasi MP/MLA Court will now continue.
The remarks made during Gandhi’s US visit had sparked a political storm at the time, with critics branding them “provocative and divisive.”
