In a significant intervention to safeguard the fairness of criminal proceedings, the Allahabad High Court stepped in to examine whether a complaint seeking registration of an FIR against Congress leader and sitting MP Rahul Gandhi could be heard impartially in Raebareli, amid allegations of repeated courtroom disruptions, intimidation, and an atmosphere that made it impossible for the complainant to prosecute his case.
The controversy arose from a criminal complaint filed by a private individual invoking Section 173(4) of the Bharatiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023, seeking directions for registration of an FIR against Rahul Gandhi on serious allegations under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Official Secrets Act, the Passport Act, and the Foreigners Act. The complaint was pending before the Special MP/MLA Court at Raebareli. Counsel for the applicant alleged that every attempt to pursue the matter before the local court was met with unprecedented disruption, with large groups of local advocates and political supporters entering the courtroom, raising slogans, issuing threats, and repeatedly obstructing judicial proceedings.
According to the applicant, the situation escalated to such an extent that even a Personal Security Officer granted by the High Court was forcibly pushed out of the courtroom, while the Presiding Judge had to be escorted out amid chaos.
Assessing the material placed on record, the High Court focused squarely on whether a “fair and impartial inquiry” could realistically be conducted in Raebareli. The Court noted that the applicant’s grievance was not merely speculative but backed by detailed accounts of repeated disruptions, threats, and a charged atmosphere linked to the political stature of the proposed accused. Emphasising the core purpose of transfer jurisdiction, the Court observed that when circumstances indicate that a litigant is unable to “espouse his cause” freely before a subordinate court, intervention becomes necessary to preserve the ends of justice.
Finding the apprehension genuine, the Court concluded that “in all fairness the application is liable to be transferred from District Raebareli to Lucknow.” Consequently, the High Court allowed the transfer application and directed that the criminal complaint pending before the MP/MLA Court at Raebareli be transferred forthwith to the competent MP/MLA Court at Lucknow.
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