Pune, 7th August 2023: In a significant development, the grand-nephew of Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, Satyaki Savarkar, has moved an application before the Pune sessions court, seeking the transfer of the defamation case filed against Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to a “competent court.” The application, submitted on Saturday, comes as Satyaki Savarkar expresses concerns over the court’s handling of the case, citing previous instances where the court has reportedly felt burdened by the proceedings.
In the application presented before the Judicial Magistrate First Class (JMFC), which was overseeing the case, Satyaki Savarkar has emphasized the need for transferring the case to a different court that is better suited to handle it. The court has reportedly accepted the application, and a hearing on the matter is scheduled to take place on Monday.
The criminal defamation case was originally filed by Satyaki Savarkar against Rahul Gandhi in April of this year. The case stems from alleged remarks made by Rahul Gandhi regarding Vinayak Damodar Savarkar during an event in London. Satyaki Savarkar’s decision to take legal action was spurred by Gandhi’s comments, which he deemed defamatory and offensive to the legacy of his grand-uncle.
During the event, Rahul Gandhi purportedly mentioned that Savarkar had penned a book detailing an incident where he and a group of friends were involved in assaulting a Muslim individual and deriving pleasure from the act. The comments raised considerable outrage and prompted Satyaki Savarkar to file a criminal defamation case against Rahul Gandhi.
