Guwahati: Former Congress president Rahul Gandhi is scheduled to visit Guwahati on October 17 on a completely private trip, with no party-related events planned. Reports indicate he will arrive in the city around 1 PM and proceed first to Sonapur to pay his respects at the Samadhi Khetra of Assam’s cultural icon, Zubeen Garg. Following this, he is expected to visit the singer’s family at Kahilipara before returning to Delhi.
Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma commented on Gandhi’s visit, saying, “Der aaye, durust aaye” (Better late than never). He added that while many had already come to offer condolences following Zubeen Garg’s demise, Gandhi’s visit comes 28 days after the singer’s passing.
In a separate development, the Gauhati High Court has granted relief to Rahul Gandhi in a long-running criminal defamation case. A single-judge bench of Justice Arun Dev Choudhury quashed a September 2023 order by the Additional Sessions Judge of Kamrup Metropolitan that had allowed additional witnesses to be included in the trial.
The case, filed by RSS worker Anjan Kumar Bora in 2015, relates to Gandhi’s claim that he was prevented from entering Barpeta Satra by RSS workers. Bora alleged that Gandhi made false statements, leading to a criminal defamation petition. The trial court had initially disallowed the listing of three new witnesses after recording statements from six witnesses in March 2023. Bora had challenged this decision, prompting the Sessions Court to permit new witnesses, which has now been set aside by the Gauhati High Court.
