VARANASI, May 28 -- A court in Varanasi on Tuesday dismissed a plea seeking to summon leader of the opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi and take strict action against him for allegedly calling Lord Ram a mythological character during his address at Brown University in the United States in April this year. The petition was filed on May 12 by advocate Harishankar Pandey in the MP/MLA court of additional chief judicial magistrate (ACJM) Niraj Kumar Tripathi. Pandey alleged that during his April 21 speech at Brown University, Rahul Gandhi referred to Lord Ram as a fictional and mythological figure, which, he claimed, hurt the religious sentiments of Hindus who follow Sanatan Dharma. Terming the remark as hate speech, Pandey sought action under sections 196 (promoting enmity between different groups on the basis of religion), 351 (criminal intimidation), 353 (statement causing public nuisance) and 356 (defamation) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). Pandey appeared before the court on May 19, stating, "I urged the court to summon Rahul Gandhi and impose strict punishment for calling Lord Ram a fictitious character." After hearing his arguments, the court reserved the order for May 27 (Tuesday). In its order on Tuesday, the court rejected the plea, citing the absence of prior permission from the district magistrate and the state government. "The plea has been dismissed as not maintainable. I will file a revision petition before the district judge," Pandey said....