Rahul Gandhi flip-flop in Supreme Court: Didn’t blame entire RSS for killing Mahatma Gandhi

Sibal repeatedly referred to the Congress leader’s affidavit in which Rahul had said that he blamed a person associated with the RSS for the killing, but did not denounce the whole organisation.

This statement by Rahul’s counsel and veteran lawyer Sibal signifies a climbdown from his previous stand. In earlier hearings, Sibal had turned down the court’s suggestion to give a “decent burial” to the case — by Rahul expressing regret over his statement. The lawyer had said that there was no question of expressing regret and that he would rather argue Rahul’s case on merits, based on evidence on record and judicial precedents.

But on Wednesday, Sibal submitted that his client had never blamed the RSS as an institution that killed Mahatma Gandhi but had only stated that a person associated with it was responsible. “We have already said this in the High Court in my affidavit. I stand by my statement made therein,” he added.

At this, the bench perused Rahul’s affidavit and seemed to agree with Sibal’s assertion that Rahul had not blamed the whole of the RSS for the assassination. “What we understand is that the accused never blamed RSS as an institution that killed Mahatma Gandhi but the person associated with it,” remarked the bench.

In March 2014, while addressing an election rally in Thane’s Bhiwandi, Rahul had said, “RSS people killed Gandhiji and today their people talk of him… They opposed Sardar Patel and Gandhiji.”

The bench asked senior counsel U R Lalit, who represented the complainant in the case, if he was satisfied with Rahul’s clarification and whether criminal charges could be dropped by taking on record his statement. Lalit said that he would want Rahul’s statement — that he did not denounce the RSS as a whole — to be recorded. The court agreed to this, and Lalit sought some time to consult the complainant, Rajesh Kunte, and revert.

The bench adjourned the matter for September 1 while indicating that it might drop the criminal defamation charges against Rahul if the complainant was satisfied with his statement.

The case against Rahul was revived in the wake of the top court’s judgment refusing to de-criminalise defamation, a penal offence punishable with two years in jail apart from a monetary penalty. The court had upheld the validity of the penal law while deciding on a clutch of petitions moved separately by Rahul, BJP MP Subramanian Swamy and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.

Through a separate petition, Rahul has sought the quashing of the criminal defamation case pending against him at a court in Bhiwandi for his comments, following a complaint lodged by Kunte, secretary of the local RSS unit.

Last month, while hearing his appeal against the charges, the bench had questioned Rahul for a “collective denunciation” of the RSS, and had asked him to either express regret or face trial.