Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was granted bail by a special court in Bengaluru on Friday, June 7 in a defamation case filed by the Karnataka unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) against the publication of advertisements labelling the BJP as corrupt in local newspapers ahead of the Assembly elections last year.
Special Magistrate KN Shivakumar granted bail to Rahul Gandhi after he appeared in person and scheduled the matter for further hearing on June 30. On Rahul Gandhi's behalf, former Member of Parliament DK Suresh provided property worth Rs 75 lakh as security.
Rahul Gandhi arrived in Bengaluru on June 7 and appeared in the special court at 10:30 a.m. in response to a summons. He was received at Kempegowda International Airport by Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar.
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister Shivakumar had been granted bail on June 1 in the same case.
On June 1, the BJP Karnataka unit sought the issuance of a non-bailable warrant against Rahul Gandhi for his non-appearance in court. Congress party leaders contended that Rahul was not involved in the publication of the advertisements in Karnataka. Despite these arguments, the court exempted Rahul from appearing on that day but mandated his presence on June 7.
On May 8, 2023, former Karnataka BJP general secretary S Keshava Prasad filed a private complaint in court, alleging that Congress leaders such as DK Shivakumar, Siddaramaiah, and Rahul Gandhi were labelling the BJP government’s administration from 2019 to 2023 as corrupt. Keshava claimed that the Congress defamed the BJP by alleging that the party had set prices for various postings in the state, including Rs 2,500 crore for the Chief Minister's post and Rs 500 crore for a minister's post, thereby promoting corruption in governance.
In his complaint, Keshav also stated that on May 5, 2023, the Congress placed advertisements in newspapers, alleging exorbitant commissions in various deals: 75% in Covid kit tenders, 40% for PWD tenders, and 30% for grants to religious organisations, among others. He argued that these allegations were “an insult to the BJP party during the elections.”
The special court had issued a summons to the Congress leaders on March 11. Rahul Gandhi responded through his advocate, stating that he could not appear in person due to commitments related to the 2024 Lok Sabha elections and requested a date in June instead.