New Delhi: Late Hindutva ideologue VD Savarkar's grandson Satyaki Savarkar on Wednesday moved a Pune court with a criminal defamation complaint against Congress leader Rahul Gandhi over his “false allegations” against Savarkar in London, news agency PTI reported. "Since the court officer concerned was absent today, they asked us to come again on Saturday to get the number of the case. We have not received the case number yet and we will receive it on Saturday," Satyaki told PTI.
Satyaki Savarkar, who moved the court with the complaint under IPC Sections 499 and 500, said, “Rahul Gandhi told the London gathering that VD Savarkar had written a book in which the latter stated that he and his five to six friends were beating a Muslim man and he (Savarkar) felt happy.”
"Rahul Gandhi, while speaking about this incident, asked if it was not a cowardly act. First of all, this incident, as narrated by Gandhi, is a fictional one. No such incident had taken place in the life of Savarkar who was a man of scientific temperament. He believed in democracy and had advised Muslims to adopt a scientific approach," Satyaki Savarkar said.
He further added that Rahul Gandhi's statement was false, malicious, and aimed at insulting him.
"VD Savarkar had not written such things in any book, so let this thing come up in the court as to in which book Rahul Gandhi read this incident," he said.
He also added that a video of Rahul Gandhi making these statements during his interaction with the Indian diaspora in London is available and will be submitted in court.
Advocate Anirudh Ganu, one of the two layers representing Satyaki Savarkar, said, "Since the court officer (assistant registrar) was not there in the court, they told us to come on Saturday and the case number will be issued".