Kerala High Court Stays Proceedings Against Congress Workers Accused Of Destroying Mahatma Gandhi's Potrait In Rahul Gandhi's Office

The Kerala High Court on Thursday stayed the proceedings against certain staff members of Rahul Gandhi, who are accused of having destroyed Mahatma Gandhi's portrait in the former Congress MP's office in Wayanad. 

Justice Raja Vijayaraghavan V. admitted the plea which alleged that the case was politically motivated, and stayed further proceedings in the matter for a period of two months. 

The petitioners averred that on June 24, 2022, at around 3.30 PM, a mob of around 300 Students Federation of India (SFI) activists, the left-wing student political outfit, formed themselves into an unlawful assembly and trespassed into the MP Office of Rahul Gandhi, armed with sticks and stones, with an intention to attack the inmates and vandalize the office. 

It was alleged that some members of the mob, while vandalizing the office, also attacked the police officers and removed the picture of Mahatma Gandhi from the wall of the office, and damaged the same. Case was thus registered against the offenders alleging various offences under the IPC and the Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act, 1984. 

The petitioners submitted that it was a week after the incident that the Police registered an FIR against the petitioners, alleging offences under Section 153 (Wantonly giving provocation with intent to cause riot) read with Section 34 IPC, upon the complaint of one Adv. Kishore Lal, for removing the photograph of Mahatma Gandhi on the wall of Rahul Gandhi's office. The petitioners averred that none of the witnesses who were questioned by the police regarding the incident mentioned anything against the petitioners. "How the police got the names of the petitioners implicating them in the case is a mystery," the plea states. 

The petitioners further stated that there was nothing in the FIR which could implicate the petitioners in the alleged offence under Section 153 IPC. 

"It is submitted that if at all the allegations made in the Annexure A2 complaint are taken in their face value and accepted in their entirety, they do not prima facie constitute any offence or make out a case against the petitioners attracting any offence under Section 153 IPC," the petitioners further stated. 

The plea has been moved through Advocates T. Asaf Ali and T.Y. Laliza. 

Case Title: Ratheesh Kumar K.R. & Ors. v. State of Kerala & Ors.

Click Here To Read/Download The Order