The Bombay High Court has requested the assistance of Maharashtra’s Advocate General to address the legal issues involved in a petition filed by Rahul Gandhi, the Congress leader. Gandhi is challenging defamation proceedings initiated against him by a magistrate’s court over his alleged remarks against Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The court noted that the case raises significant legal questions and extended the interim relief granted to Gandhi. The hearing on Gandhi’s petition has been adjourned multiple times since November 2021. Gandhi’s lawyer argued that a magistrate cannot hear a case under section 199 (2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, and that a political party cannot file a defamation complaint under section 499 of the Indian Penal Code. The complaint alleges that Gandhi made defamatory statements against Modi at a rally in Rajasthan in September 2018. Gandhi’s petition argues that the litigation is frivolous and vexatious, and motivated by a political agenda. Gandhi is facing multiple defamation cases across the country. Earlier this year, he was convicted in a defamation case but the conviction was later stayed by the Supreme Court.