Allahabad High Court disposes PIL on Rahul Gandhi’s citizenship, leaves decision on Centre

The Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court on Monday disposed of a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the citizenship status of Rahul Gandhi, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha. 

A bench comprising Justice A R Masoodi and Justice Rajiv Singh permitted the petitioners to approach the appropriate forum for relief. A detailed order was issued, though it was not available at the time of filing this report.

During a previous hearing, Deputy Solicitor General S B Pandey informed the court that, acting on the petitioner's complaint, the concerned ministry had written to the United Kingdom government to obtain details about Gandhi’s alleged British citizenship. He had also requested additional time for the government to reach a final decision on the petitioner’s representation.

Reports indicate that the central government could not commit to a timeframe for resolving the complaint. The court subsequently observed that there was no justification for keeping the petition pending.

A senior official involved in the matter stated that the PIL was disposed of with liberty granted to the Government of India to take a decision on the petitioner’s representation regarding Gandhi's citizenship. As for the petitioner’s request for the cancellation of Gandhi’s Lok Sabha membership, the court noted that the plea did not meet the necessary legal criteria for such relief.

The matter relates to a petition filed by S Vignesh Shishir, who sought a court order directing the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC), the Chief Electoral Officer of Uttar Pradesh, and the Returning Officer of Rae Bareli to cancel Gandhi’s election certificate. He also demanded a CBI investigation into Gandhi’s citizenship status.