HC seeks status of plea from centre in Rahul Gandhi’s citizenship matter

LUCKNOW: The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad high court on Wednesday asked the central government to furnish details about the status of a representation before the union home ministry, which claimed that Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi holds United Kingdom (UK) citizenship.

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A division bench of justice Rajan Roy and justice Om Prakash Shukla passed the order on a petition filed by one S. Vignesh Shishir of Karnataka, seeking a CBI probe into Gandhi’s citizenship matter. The court directed additional solicitor general (ASG) S.B. Pandey to obtain instructions from the ministry of home affairs in this regard, said advocate Ashok Pandey, who claimed to be an intervenor in the matter.

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The HC in July 2024 had allowed Shishir to withdraw a similar petition and granted him the liberty to pursue remedies under the Citizenship Act. Shishir has now again moved the high court for a decision on his representations.

During the hearing on Wednesday, Shishir informed the court that after withdrawing his earlier petition before the high court, he submitted two representations to the competent authority in the union home ministry.

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These representations sought the cancellation of Gandhi’s Indian citizenship on the grounds of his alleged British citizenship. Shishir has also requested a CBI probe into the matter. The court clarified that its current focus was solely on whether the centre had received the representations and what decision or action it proposed to take. Passing the order, the court directed the matter to be listed on September 30.