India’s Supreme Court on Monday ordered an immediate halt to proceedings initiated by the Allahabad High Court against Congress leader and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi over allegations of disproportionate assets, stressing that courts must follow the principles of natural justice when directing investigations.
A three-judge Bench headed by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Enforcement Directorate (ED) and other authorities not to submit any reports to the High Court until further orders. The Supreme Court also directed the High Court to defer its next hearing, which had been scheduled for August 20.
Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Gandhi, argued that the High Court proceedings and its directions to the CBI and ED to inquire into allegations made by private complainant S. Vignesh Shishir amounted to a “witch-hunt.” Gandhi’s lawyers said the proceedings had been conducted in chambers, documents were kept in sealed covers and the Congress leader was not given an opportunity to respond to the allegations.
Chief Justice Kant observed that while police and investigative agencies may act on complaints using their statutory powers, courts directing an inquiry are expected to respect principles of natural justice. Justice Joymalya Bagchi also questioned why the investigative agencies had not independently acted earlier if they considered the allegations serious.
Additional Solicitor General S.V. Raju, representing the CBI and ED, argued that the allegations could not simply be dismissed as frivolous and maintained that, if established, they could constitute a serious case of disproportionate assets. The Supreme Court said it would examine whether the High Court had sufficient grounds to direct the agencies to begin an inquiry.
Gandhi had challenged orders issued by the Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court in May and July directing the CBI and ED to examine the allegations against him. He argued that the orders lacked adequate reasoning and resulted in what he described as a “roving inquiry” that affected his civil rights and political reputation.
Gandhi has also challenged the standing of complainant Shishir, alleging that he is associated with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh and has previously filed several complaints and public interest cases against him. The Supreme Court directed Gandhi’s legal team to provide the case documents to Shishir, who appeared before the court on caveat.
