Rahul Gandhi seeks relief in case involving Shivraj Chouhan's son
What's the story
Congress MP and Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, has filed an application before the Madhya Pradesh High Court, expressing regret over a statement that is part of a defamation case filed by Kartikeya Singh, son of Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan. The case stems from remarks allegedly made by Gandhi during a 2018 election rally in Jhabua, where he mentioned the Panama Papers leak while referring to Kartikeya's name.
Complaint filed
BJP leader's son alleges defamation
Kartikeya has alleged that Gandhi's remarks were defamatory and approached a special MP-MLA court in Bhopal. The trial court then issued summons for Gandhi to appear personally in the matter. In response, the Congress leader moved the Madhya Pradesh High Court seeking to quash both the summons and defamation proceedings against him.
Twitter Post
'Lost count of number of times he apologized'
Rahul Gandhi should perhaps make “Sorry” his middle name. One has lost count of the number of times he has had to apologise, express regret, or retract his defamatory and irresponsible statements.
— Amit Malviya (@amitmalviya) June 25, 2026
The latest instance comes in the defamation case filed by Kartikeya Singh, son of… pic.twitter.com/konx8e9Iry
Regret expressed
Gandhi expresses regret over statement
In his application, Gandhi said the remarks were not meant to refer to Kartikeya. The plea also expressed regret over the statement, as per court submissions. The development has invited a sharp response from Bharatiya Janata Party IT cell head Amit Malviya. He criticized Gandhi for repeatedly making controversial remarks and later retracting them. Malviya wrote, "Rahul Gandhi should perhaps make 'Sorry' his middle name. One has lost count of the number of times he has had to apologize."
Political response
Gandhi's history of apologies
Gandhi has a history of apologizing for his statements. In 2019, he had apologized to the Supreme Court over remarks related to the Rafale fighter jet case. At that time, he had accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of corruption in the Rafale deal and popularized the slogan "chowkidar chor hai" (the watchman is a thief) during Lok Sabha election campaigning.