On Wednesday, the Jharkhand High Court granted an exemption to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi from the requirement of appearing in person before a special court in Ranchi. This exemption pertains to a defamation petition connected to the 'Modi surname' case. As a result of the court's decision, Rahul Gandhi is not obligated to attend the court proceedings for this particular case.

The single-headed bench of Justice Sanjay Kumar Dwivedi allowed Gandhi to be represented through his lawyer on certain conditions. However, the court stated that witnesses examined in his absence will not be re-examined later.

The case is related to a defamation lawsuit filed against Rahul Gandhi concerning his statement made during a Lok Sabha election rally in Ranchi in 2019. During the rally, Gandhi remarked, "Sabhi Modi chor hain - Neerav Modi, Lalit Modi, etc.," which translates to "All Modis are thieves - Neerav Modi, Lalit Modi, etc."

The petitioner, Pradeep Modi, took offense to these comments and filed a defamation suit against Rahul Gandhi for making objectionable and derogatory remarks targeting the Modi community.

The petitioner alleged that these statements caused emotional distress and harm to the sentiments of the community. In response, Pradeep Modi initiated a defamation suit, seeking compensation of 20 crores as redress for the alleged defamation.

To this, Rahul Gandhi had filed a petition before the lower court seeking exemption from appearing, but it was rejected on May 3. The Congress leader then approached the High Court.