Congress leader Ahmed Patel bats for Rahul Gandhi, alleges vendetta

Senior Congress leader Ahmed Patel defended former party president and Member of Parliament from Wayanad Rahul Gandhi on Thursday, October 9. He was reacting to the BJP's criticism of Gandhi going abroad with just a few days left for the Assembly elections in Maharashtra and Haryana. Patel maintained that the former Congress president would campaign in both the states. Taking an indirect dig at the arrest of former Finance Minister P Chidambaram and senior Karnataka leader DK Shivakumar, he alleged that the BJP-led Central government was extremely vindictive in its approach towards the leaders of the opposition parties.

Read: 'Leaders Like Rahul Gandhi Rare In Indian Politics', Says Adhir Ranjan

'Let the law take its own course'

Returning back from his visit to Bangkok, Gandhi arrived at the Surat airport in Gujarat on Thursday morning to face two defamation cases against him. Patel also voiced his opinion on Gandhi's appearance in the court. He observed that the decision of the judge would be respected.

Read: Rahul Gandhi To Visit Gujarat On October 10 To Face Defamation Cases

Defamation cases

The first defamation case pertains to him allegedly defaming the entire Modi community. A complaint in this regard was filed by the BJP Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) from Surat West, Purnesh Modi. The other case is in relation to his allegation that the Ahmedabad District Cooperative Bank was involved in a "scam", where scrapped currency notes with a face value of Rs.750 crore were exchanged with valid bills within 5 days of demonetisation in 2016. This case will be heard on Friday.

Read: Problem Is Our Leader Has Walked Away: Cong's Khurshid On Rahul Gandhi

The case on October 10

Modi’s complaint stems from Gandhi’s speech at a campaign rally in Kolar, Karnataka on April 13, where he reportedly said, "Nirav Modi, Lalit Modi, Narendra Modi- how come they all have Modi as a common surname? How come all thieves have Modi as a common surname?" Thereafter, Chief Judicial Magistrate B H Kapadia had issued summons to him in May after finding prima facie substance in the complaint. The court had granted him exemption from personal appearance during the last hearing held in July. It also fixed October 10 as the next date of hearing.

Read: Rahul Gandhi Running Away From Duties: Cong Sources On Bangkok Trip