LUCKNOW, April 4 -- The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad high court on Friday refused to set aside a sessions court order summoning Congress leader Rahul Gandhi for allegedly making derogatory remarks against Vinayak Damodar Savarkar during his Bharat Jodo Yatra rally in 2022.

Justice Subhash Vidyarthi refused to entertain Gandhi's plea after observing that he has the option to approach the sessions judge with a plea under Section 397 (power to revise trial court's order) of the Code of Criminal Procedure. Rahul Gandhi had challenged the summons order issued by a Lucknow sessions court in December last year.

"It is in furtherance of the aforesaid order that the trial court has passed an order dated 12.12.2024 summoning the petitioner to f...