A Bengaluru court summoned Karnataka Minister Priyank Kharge and Youth Congress leader Mohammed Haris Nalapad over alleged defamatory remarks against the RSS. Both leaders have responded, with Nalapad expressing faith in the judiciary.
Karnataka Minister Priyank Kharge and Pradesh Youth Congress Committee president Mohammed Haris Nalapad have been summoned by a Bengaluru court after it took cognisance of a private complaint alleging that the two leaders made defamatory remarks against the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).
The XLII Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Special Court for MPs/MLAs, Bengaluru, took cognisance of the private complaint filed by Tejas A. over the alleged remarks made by the two Congress leaders against the RSS. The court took cognisance of the offence of criminal defamation under Section 356 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), 2023, and issued summons as part of the proceedings.
Complainant ‘Deeply Hurt’ by Remarks
Speaking to ANI, complainant Tejas Gowda said he decided to pursue legal action after he felt deeply hurt by the alleged remarks and consulted his advocate before approaching the court. “I have been deeply hurt in my sentiments, so I met my advocate and discussed the matter. As directed by my advocate, we filed a petition in the court, and the court has also agreed to it. Now it has taken up the inquiry and given summons,” Tejas Gowda said.
He added that the matter was being pursued strictly through legal means. “We, the Swayamsevaks, have been respecting the law of the land, and we have met the advocate, and we are fighting legally in the court,” he said.
Nalapad Expresses Faith in Judiciary
Responding to the development, Karnataka Pradesh Youth Congress Committee president Mohammed Haris Nalapad said he had full faith in the judicial process and maintained that freedom of speech is a constitutional right. “I believe in the judiciary system of this country, and I’m a citizen of India, and freedom of speech is everyone’s right. I’m 100 per cent sure that the court is going to give a fair verdict. And I’m not going to shy away from what I’ve said,” Nalapad told ANI.
He further alleged that the RSS was intolerant of criticism and expressed confidence in the judiciary. “They (RSS) don’t want to be spoken against. The judiciary system shall and will act based on the Constitution,” he added.
Kharge’s Scrutiny of RSS
Priyank Kharge has repeatedly called attention to the relationship between the BJP and the RSS, alleging that the party has functioned as a mere instrument of the RSS. He had also sought clarity from the RSS regarding its constitutional status and financial compliance, triggering sharp reactions from the BJP and allied organisations.
In a post on X earlier, Kharge said the BJP “rattles” whenever the RSS faces scrutiny, reacting defensively each time. He brought up several questions, which, according to him, ignite the same response: why an outfit, which Kharge claimed, stayed out of the independence movement, now positions itself as an authority on patriotism, and why nearly five decades passed before the national flag was raised at the RSS’s Nagpur headquarters.
This come amid a continuing row that began after Kharge wrote an open letter to RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat seeking clarity on the organisation’s legal status, financial transparency and constitutional accountability as it marks 100 years of its existence, saying an organisation that claims over 60,000 shakhas and crores of swayamsevaks in India and abroad must be held to the “highest standards of transparency, accountability and constitutional compliance”. (ANI)
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by Asianet Newsable English staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)