PUNE, JUNE 2, 2025 —
A Pune court has rejected an application filed by Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, seeking to compel Satyaki Savarkar, the complainant in the Vinayak Damodar Savarkar defamation case, to disclose details of his maternal lineage. Gandhi had alleged that Satyaki is the grandson of Gopal Vinayak Godse, the younger brother of Nathuram Godse, who assassinated Mahatma Gandhi. had deliberately concealed material facts regarding his maternal lineage — specifically, that he is the grandson of Gopal Vinayak Godse, the younger brother of Mahatma Gandhi’s assassin Nathuram Godse [Satyaki Savarkar v. Rahul Gandhi].
COURT FINDS NO MERIT IN GANDHI’S PLEA
Judicial Magistrate (First Class) Amol Shriram Shinde dismissed Gandhi’s application, stating that the complainant’s family background is irrelevant to the current proceedings.
“The case is not related or family tree of late Smt. Himani Ashok Savarkar is not disputed in this case. Therefore, this court does not find any merits in the application of the accused. There is also no need to send matter for further investigation. Hence the application sans merits and same is liable to be rejected,”
— Order dated May 28, 2025.
The court emphasized that the central issue pertains to the alleged defamatory remarks made by Rahul Gandhi against Vinayak Savarkar, and not the personal history of the complainant.
BACKGROUND OF THE DEFAMATION CASE
In March 2023, during a speech in London, Rahul Gandhi had allegedly referred to an incident supposedly described in Savarkar’s writings, where he claimed that Savarkar found pleasure in assaulting a Muslim man.
Satyaki Savarkar, identifying himself as the grandnephew of Vinayak Damodar Savarkar, denied the existence of such a passage in Savarkar’s writings. He subsequently filed a defamation complaint seeking Gandhi’s conviction under Section 500 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and compensation under Section 357 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC).
RAHUL GANDHI’S ALLEGATIONS ON CONCEALMENT OF LINEAGE
In response, Rahul Gandhi claimed that Satyaki had “deliberately, systematically, very brilliantly avoided, and suppressed” disclosing his maternal family tree, which allegedly links him directly to the Godse family.
“As per information, mother of complainant late Smt. Himani Ashok Savarkar is daughter of Gopal Vinayak Godse, younger brother of Nathuram Vinayak Godse, who killed father of nation Mahatma Gandhi on 30/01/1948 and was hanged along with his accomplice Narayan Apte on 15/11/1949,”
— Rahul Gandhi in court filing.
Gandhi further pointed out that Satyaki’s mother, Himani Ashok Savarkar, was associated with Hindutva organisations such as Abhinav Bharat and Akhil Bhartiya Hindu Mahasabha.
According to Gandhi, the alleged ideological and blood ties between the Godse and Savarkar families are essential to determining whether the legacy of Vinayak Savarkar — the subject of Gandhi’s remarks — was actually defamed.
Though Satyaki submitted two versions of his paternal family tree, Gandhi emphasized that no information was provided about his maternal side, which, he argued, holds legal and historical relevance.
Gandhi had requested that:
The court direct Satyaki to file an affidavit disclosing his maternal lineage;
Alternatively, the matter be referred for further investigation under Section 173(8) CrPC to Vishrambag Police Station, Pune.
Court’s Earlier Ruling in Favour of Gandhi
Although this latest plea has been rejected, the court had earlier in May 2025 accepted Rahul Gandhi’s request to convert the proceedings from a summary trial to a summons trial, allowing the inclusion of broader documentary and historical evidence. Gandhi had justified this procedural change by stating that his statements were based on “verifiable historical sources.”
LEGAL REPRESENTATION
Advocate Milind Pawar appeared on behalf of Rahul Gandhi.
Advocate Sangram Kolhatkar represented Satyaki Savarkar.
Current Status
The defamation case is yet to be heard on merits, and the recent ruling marks only a procedural development in the ongoing legal battle.
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