Defamation case against Sonia, Rahul, Yechury for Lankesh murder comments
What's the story
An RSS swayamsevak has filed a defamation case against Congress' Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi and CPI(M) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury for linking journalist Gauri Lankesh's murder to the RSS. Mumbai-based petitioner Dhrutiman Joshi said their statements tarnished the RSS' image "without citing any proof" and belittled the "organization in the eyes of the common public". Joshi was reportedly "personally affected" by the statements.
Statements
What had Sonia, Rahul and Yechury said?
After Lankesh's murder, Rahul said, "Anybody who speaks against the ideology of the BJP, RSS is pressured, attacked, killed." Sonia Gandhi termed it "a chilling reminder of the fact that intolerance and bigotry is raising its ugly head". Yechury, meanwhile, claimed an "eerie pattern" between the Lankesh, Govind Pansare and MM Kalburgi murders and asked, "Who has fostered this climate of bigotry, hate, intolerance?"
Complaint
The comments "humiliated" me, says the petitioner
"After the comments were made, my friends told me my organization's ideology killed Lankesh," Joshi said, adding he was "humiliated and defamed". "(Rahul) could have used any term, but when he specifically mentioned RSS, that did not go down well with me," Joshi said. Rahul Gandhi is already facing a defamation case for saying during the 2014 campaign that RSS had killed Mahatma Gandhi.