Congress leader moves court over BJP's poster on Rahul Gandhi

Jaipur: A Congress leader has filed a petition in a court against BJP national president JP Nadda and party's IT cell incharge Amit Malviya over a social media post by the saffron party, showing party leader Rahul Gandhi as 'a new age Ravan'.

In his petition, general secretary of Congress' Rajasthan unit, Jaswant Gurjar, has pleaded that a case be registered against both BJP leaders under IPC Section 499 (false imputation against another person), 500 (defamation), 504 (intentional insult).

Gurjar has filed the petition at Jaipur Metropolitan Court-11. The court has decided to hear the arguments on the plea on October 9.

A photograph of Gandhi morphed as Ravan in a poster put out from the Bharatiya Janata Party's official handle on X has stirred a controversy, triggering strong criticism from the Congress, which has called it "unacceptable" and "downright dangerous".

"The petition has been admitted by the court and the hearing for the case has been scheduled on October 9," Gurjar said.

"The accused publicised the post deliberately with ill-intention on October 5 and the aim of the accused is to insult and to harm the goodwill of Congress and people associated with it and to make political gains," the plea said.

The petition said that the BJP leaders deliberately presented Gandhi as anti-Ram and anti-religion to instigate people against him.

The petitioner has pleaded before the court to get the statements of both the accused recorded and get the matter investigated.

The Congress party has protested against the poster at several places across the country.

The poster showed Gandhi with several heads, with the title "Bharat Khatre Mein Hai - A Congress party production. Directed by George Soros".

The post by the BJP accompanying the poster said, "The new age Ravan is here. He is evil. Anti-Dharma. Anti-Ram. His aim is to destroy Bharat."

Soros, a Hungarian-born American financier, philanthropist, and activist, had come under fire from the BJP after he made critical comments on Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the wake of a report by US short-seller Hindenburg Research on the Adani Group.