Mr Gandhi said his remark had been misinterpreted by the RSS worker who filed the initial complaint against him.
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Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday told the Supreme Court that he did not mean to accuse the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh as a whole of assassinating Mahatma Gandhi, reported The Times of India.
The case pertains to Rahul’s appeal before the apex court to quash the defamation suit filed by the RSS against the Congress vice-president for his remarks that it had killed Gandhi.
The bench comprising justices Dipak Misra and R F nariman observed that in view of Rahul Ganshi’s clarification, the charge of defaming the RSS would fall.
Reacting to the development, BJP’s national spokesperson on Twitter said, “Rahul Gandhi has chickened out in Supreme Court saying he did not blame RSS for Mahatma assassination. They opposed Sardar Patel and Gandhiji”.
The bench indicated it would pass an order on September 1 that Gandhi has “unequivocally” stated that he had never blamed RSS as an institution for the assassination but persons associated with it had killed Mahatma Gandhi.
Senior advocate Kapil Sibal is likely to argue for Gandhi.
In May 2015, Rahul Gandhi had moved the Supreme Court, seeking a dismissal of the criminal case.
On May 7, 2015, the apex court had stayed proceedings against the Congress vice-president, pending before a magisterial court in Bhiwandi in Maharashtra’s Thane district.
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Earlier, the bench had questioned the speech and wondered “why he had made a speech quoting wrong historical fact”. Kunte had alleged that the Congress leader had sought to tarnish the reputation of RSS through his speech. Following the complaint, the magistrate issued a notice to Gandhi, directing his personal appearance.
