THE JHARKHAND STORY DESK
Chaibasa, August 6: Congress leader and Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi appeared before the special MP-MLA court at the Chaibasa Civil Court on Wednesday.
He marked his attendance before Judge Supriya Rani Tigga, after which the court granted him bail on the condition that he would cooperate during the trial. Advocates Pradeep Chandra and Dipankar Roy represented Rahul Gandhi in court.
Case Linked to 2018 Speech
The case stems from a speech delivered by Rahul Gandhi during the All India Congress Committee (AICC) plenary session on March 28, 2018, where he allegedly referred to BJP leaders as “murderers” and “liars.”
Taking objection to this remark, BJP leader Pratap Kumar Katiyar filed a criminal defamation case against him in the Chaibasa CJM Court on July 9, 2018. Katiyar, accompanied by other BJP leaders, was also present in court on Wednesday.
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Rahul Gandhi Arrived in Chaibasa by Air
Special security arrangements were in place for Rahul Gandhi’s visit to Chaibasa. He arrived from Ranchi by helicopter, with a helipad prepared at Tata College ground in Chaibasa.
State Health Minister Irfan Ansari, Rural Development Minister Deepika Pandey, MLA Anup Singh, former minister Bandhu Tirkey, and former Jharkhand Congress president Rajesh Thakur traveled by road from Ranchi via Bandgaon and Chakradharpur, reaching Chaibasa around 10:30 a.m.
Rahul Gandhi entered the court at 10:57 a.m. However, Ministers Irfan Ansari, Deepika Pandey, and others were not allowed inside. MLA Sona Ram Sinku and other leaders were present outside.
Court Proceedings and Previous Developments
Initially, Rahul Gandhi was scheduled to appear on June 26. The case, filed on Pratap Katiyar’s petition, was first heard in the Chaibasa court, later transferred to the Ranchi MP-MLA special court in February 2020 by the Jharkhand High Court, and then sent back to the Chaibasa MP-MLA court on further directions.
After the court took cognizance, summons were issued to Rahul Gandhi, but he failed to appear. The court subsequently issued first a bailable and then a non-bailable warrant, which he also ignored.
Challenging the warrant, Rahul Gandhi approached the Jharkhand High Court, but his plea was dismissed on March 20, 2024. He then filed an application under Section 205 of the CrPC seeking exemption from personal appearance, which the Chaibasa court rejected.
Against this order, he moved the High Court again but later withdrew the petition on March 10, 2025, stating he would file a criminal miscellaneous petition.
Meanwhile, an interim stay granted by the High Court on April 25, 2024, lapsed. The Chaibasa court issued another non-bailable warrant against him on May 22, 2025.
Rahul Gandhi subsequently challenged the special court’s summons in the High Court on June 2. The court directed him to appear on June 26, but his counsel informed that he would not be able to attend on that date. Finally, he appeared in court on Wednesday.
