Rahul Gandhi to appear in Surat, Ahmedabad courts

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is likely to appear in two separate defamation cases filed in Surat and Ahmedabad courts on October 10 and 11. The Congress has all geared up to turn the occasion into a grand welcome in both the cities.

The Congress' ex-president Rahul Gandhi is to appear in Surat court for his remarks over Modi surname during election rallies in April this year in Kolar, Karnataka. Rahul is reported to have said that "Nirav Modi, Lalit Modi and Narendra Modi...how come they all have Modi as common surname? How come all the thieves have Modi as the common surname?"

Following his remark, BJP MLA in Surat Purnesh Modi had moved the court and filed a defamation suit against Rahul under Section 499 and 500 of Indian Penal Code (IPC). Modi has claimed that Rahul's remark defamed the entire Modi community by calling them as "thieves." Following the complaint, the court had issued summons to Rahul for his appearance.

After attending the Surat court, Rahul is likely to go to Maharashtra and come back to Ahmedabad to appear in another court, which is hearing a defamation case filed for calling then BJP president Amit Shah, now Union Home Minister, a "murder accused" during another election rally in April this year.

"We have planned for grand welcome of Rahul Gandhi in Surat as well as in Ahmedabad airports and all the roads leading to the courts. We are also holding a meeting in Ahmedabad on October 12 after his appearance in the court," Congress spokesperson Manish Doshi told Deccan Herald.

On July 12, Rahul had appeared in a court in Ahmedabad in connection with a defamation case filed by Ahmedabad District Cooperative Bank (ADC) and its chairman Ajay Patel for his remarks that ADC was involved in a "national scam." He had pleaded not guilty in the court.