In what appears to be the latest in a series of clarifications before the court, Maafi veer Rahul Gandhi expressed regret before the Madhya Pradesh High Court over his allegedly defamatory statement concerning Union Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan’s son, Kartikeya Singh, stating that the remark was not intended to refer to him, as reported in The Hindu.
Congress scion and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday, 24 June 2026, filed an application before the Madhya Pradesh High Court expressing regret over an allegedly defamatory statement concerning Union Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan’s son, Kartikeya Singh.
The application, submitted through Gandhi’s counsel, stated that the Congress leader’s remarks were not intended to refer to Kartikeya Singh.
The case stems from a criminal defamation complaint filed by Kartikeya Singh before a special court in Bhopal designated to hear cases involving Members of Parliament and Members of Legislative Assembly.
According to the complaint, Rahul Gandhi, while addressing an election rally in Jhabua in 2018, allegedly referred to Kartikeya Singh in connection with the Panama Papers leak, thereby harming his reputation.
Following the complaint, the Bhopal court issued summons directing Rahul Gandhi to appear in person. Challenging both the summons and the defamation proceedings, Gandhi subsequently approached the Jabalpur Bench of the Madhya Pradesh High Court seeking to have them quashed.
The matter came up before Justice Pramod Kumar Agarwal of the Madhya Pradesh High Court. During the proceedings on Wednesday, the petitioner produced the records of the trial court in compliance with an earlier direction issued by the High Court.
Advocate Sankalp Kochhar appeared on behalf of the complainant, Kartikeya Singh.
The High Court is scheduled to hear Rahul Gandhi’s petition on Thursday, 25 June 2026, when it is expected to consider his plea seeking the quashing of both the summons and the pending defamation case.
This is not the first time he has apologised or clarified his remarks. Here are a few instances.
“Chowkidar Chor Hai”
In 2018, the Supreme Court dismissed all petitions seeking a court-monitored probe of the Rs 59,000 crore contract for Rafale fighter planes made by Dassault Aviation of France, saying that there was no reason to doubt the decision-making process. Despite the Supreme Court judgement, in 2019, Rahul Gandhi based his entire campaign on the Rafale deal, coining the slogan “Chowkidar Chor Hai.” During a media interaction, he alleged that the Supreme Court had confirmed the “Chowkidar” was involved in theft and had accepted corruption in the Rafale issue. Rahul Gandhi even called the Prime Minister “Chor” (Thief) on the floor of the Lok Sabha, which was expunged. The Court, on a petition filed by BJP leader Meenakshi Lekhi, sent Gandhi a criminal contempt notice for misrepresenting it and attributing “Chowkidar Chor Hai” to the Court’s decision.
Rahul Gandhi issued an apology to the Supreme Court for incorrectly attributing his “chowkidar chor hai” (watchman is a thief) comment to the apex court. The court had issued a contempt notice to Rahul Gandhi for the remark. However, Rahul Gandhi clarified that he had made the statement in the heat of political campaigning and that it was not intended to attack the court or its judges. Consequently, he expressed regret and apologised for the same.
In other cases, he clarified that he did not ‘mean’ what it seemed to be.
“Khoon Ki Dalali” Remark On PM
In 2016, during an election rally, Rahul Gandhi accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of doing “khoon ki dalali.” His comments were widely condemned, prompting him to clarify that he supported the surgical strikes but not using the Army for political propaganda. His controversial remarks about the surgical strikes evoked strong reactions from the public and other opposition parties. The incident also reminded people of his mother and former Congress President’s infamous “maut ka saudagar” jibe against then Gujarat CM, Modi.
Blaming RSS For Mahatma Gandhi Killing
One of the most prominent controversies involving Rahul Gandhi is his statement made in 2014 during an election rally, where he accused the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) of killing Mahatma Gandhi. The RSS worker, Rajesh Kunte, filed a case against him for defaming the organization, and the courts reprimanded him for making defamatory remarks. Initially, Rahul Gandhi refused to retract his statement, asserting that he would provide evidence to support his claim. However, he changed his stance after the Supreme Court criticized him for collective denunciations and required him to face trial. Rahul Gandhi then “clarified” that he did not blame the RSS for Mahatma Gandhi’s assassination but rather people “associated” with it, which was a flimsy rebuttal far from the truth.
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