The Jharkhand High Court on Wednesday granted relief to Wayanad MP Rahul Gandhi from personally appearing before a special Ranchi court in hearing a defamation petition related to the ‘Modi surname’ case.

The court of Justice Sanjay Kumar Dwivedi allowed him to be represented through his advocate before the lower court on certain conditions. However, the high court cautioned that witnesses examined in his absence will not be re-examined later.

The district court after recording the statements of the advocate had issued summons to Rahul Gandhi to appear in person. Gandhi then moved a petition before the lower court requesting exemption from appearance, only to be rejected on May 3.

The case is related to a defamation suit filed by city advocate Pradeep Modi for ‘all Modis are thieves’ comment made by the former Congress President at a Lok Sabha election rally in 2019.

Also Read:Watch: Rahul Gandhi dances with Toda tribe members ahead of Wayanad visit

-With inputs from PTI

First Published:Aug 16, 2023 8:36 PM IST