Mumbai: The hearing in a criminal defamation case against Congress chief Rahul Gandhi has been adjourned till October 19  this year by Bhiwandi court.

Complainant Rajesh Kunte’s lawyer has sought adjournment because one writ petition pertaining to Bhiwandi defamation is pending before the high court and that writ petition will be heard in the month of August. The court has also accepted Rahul Gandhi’s exemption application on Saturday’s hearing.

RSS worker Kunte had filed a criminal defamation case against Mr Gandhi for delivering a speech in Bhiwandi during 2014 election.

Mr Gandhi had said that “RSS people killed Father of the nation Mahatma Gandhiji and today their people (BJP) talk of him. They opposed Sardar Patel and Gandhiji.”

On June 12, 2017 Congress chief Rahul Gandhi pleaded “not guilty” in a Bhiwandi court. Bhiwandi magistrate A.I. Shaikh has framed charges under section 499 (defamation) and section 500 (punishment) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Under section 500, a person found guilty of defamation faces simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to two years, or with fine, or both.

Mr Gandhi’s counsel Narayan Iyer told The Asian Age on Saturday that he had filed exemption application stating there is another defamation case against him at Patna, Bihar therefore Mr Gandhi would not appear before the Bhiwandi  court and sought exemption. Judicial magistrate of Bhiwandi accepted the application and adjourned hearing till October 19.