NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday stayed trial court proceedings against Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in a criminal defamation case filed against him for alleged defamatory remarks against Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

Naveen Jha, a BJP worker, had filed the case against Gandhi in 2019 for his alleged remarks against Shah.

During one of his public speeches in Chaibasa before the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Gandhi had allegedly referred to Shah as a “murderer”.

A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta issued notice to the Jharkhand government and the BJP leader while seeking their response on Gandhi's appeal.

Gandhi has challenged the Jharkhand High Court order, which rejected his petition to quash proceedings against him in a trial court in connection with the complaint.