Defamation of Savarkar: CD of Rahul’s speech turns out blank in court

Pune: The CD containing the video of the alleged defamatory speech made by Rahul Gandhi against V D Savarkar in London in 2023, provided as evidence, could not run before a court here as it was found to contain no data, PTI reported.

Advocate Sangram Kolhatkar, the lawyer representing Satyaki Savarkar, who is the petitioner, claimed before the court that he had checked the CD earlier, and it was working.

Further, the court has rejected Satyaki Savarkar's request to play a YouTube video of Rahul Gandhi's alleged 2023 defamatory speech about Hindutva ideologue V D Savarkar.

In a subsequent development, the special court for cases against MPs and MLAs on Thursday also rejected an application by Satyaki, who is V D Savarkar's grand-nephew, requesting the court to play an additional CD provided to the court. No such additional CD was on record, the judge said.

Advocate Sangram Kolhatkar, the lawyer representing Satyaki Savarkar, requested the court to play the original link of the YouTube channel. But Gandhi's lawyer, Advocate Milind Pawar, opposed the request.

The court, in its order on the same day, stated that the complainant had filed a certificate as per Section 65-B of the Indian Evidence Act with respect to the CD, but the same certificate cannot be used for the YouTube URL.

The URL or web link is not supported by a certificate as per section 65-B, and hence it can not be admitted as evidence, said Judicial Magistrate (First Class) Amol Shinde.

On November 27, Satyaki Savarkar requested the court to run the additional CD provided to the court.

However, the court stated that there was no such CD on record.

Advocate Kolhatkar said he has sought a judicial inquiry into the 'blank CD' and the missing additional CD.