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Following the acquittal of Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi in a criminal defamation case by a special MP-MLA court in Sultanpur, Uttar Pradesh, Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra mounted a fierce attack against the ruling administration, accusing it of running a "filthy campaign" to defame and target her brother for fearlessly speaking truth to power.
In a post on X, Priyanka praised Rahul Gandhis resilience in the face of political and legal pressure, asserting that the court's decision marks the beginning of truth prevailing. "The truth can never be suppressed for long. This government has spent unprecedented resources on a filthy campaign to malign my brother, to defame him and slap bogus cases on him simply for fearlessly telling the truth. It takes immense courage, tenacity and the perseverance of a true warrior to stand against an onslaught of lies the way he has. One by one, the chips will fall. The truth will emerge clear and strong. This is just the beginning," wrote Priyanka Gandhi Vadra. This comes after Rahul Gandhi sparked widespread political and social media discussion by posting the Sanskrit phrase Satyam Shivam Sundaram (Truth, Auspiciousness, Beauty) alongside a graphic resembling Lord Shiva's tripundra tilak (three horizontal white strokes crossed by a red vertical mark) on his official X account. The reaction follows a key legal development in Uttar Pradeshs Sultanpur MP-MLA court on October 26. In a 2018 defamation case, a local BJP leader, Vijay Mishra, had filed a criminal complaint in August 2018 over remarks made by Rahul Gandhi at a press conference in Bengaluru ahead of the Karnataka Assembly elections, where he allegedly made derogatory references to then BJP National President Amit Shah. Pronouncing its verdict, the Special MP-MLA Court in Sultanpur acquitted Rahul Gandhi. Special Judge Shubham Verma, who had heard final arguments earlier in October, delivered the judgment acquitting him. The court held that the remarks did not legally constitute criminal defamation under Section 499/500 of the IPC, and that the complainant was not an "aggrieved person" legally entitled to bring the criminal complaint. (ANI)
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