U.S. watching Rahul Gandhi's case in Indian courts: official
The HinduThe United States is watching the court case of Congress party leader Rahul Gandhi, an official has said while observing that Washington continues to engage with India on the shared commitment towards democratic principles and the protection of human rights, including freedom of expression. Mr. Gandhi was on March 23 sentenced to two years in jail by a Surat court in a 2019 criminal defamation case over his “why all of these thieves have Modi surname” remark. We are watching Mr. Gandhi’s case in Indian courts and we engage with the Government of India on our shared commitment to democratic values, including, freedom of expression,” the State Department’s Deputy Spokesperson Vedant Patel told reporters at a news conference on March 27. Opposition parties in India stepped up their offensive against the Narendra Modi Government and observed a “black day for democracy” on March 27, three days after Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was disqualified from the Lok Sabha.