It will be decided in people's court that 'lotus brand chowkidar' is indeed thief: Rahul

On a day Rahul Gandhi expressed regret in the Supreme Court over his remarks in connection with the top court's Rafale judgment, the Congress president attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying on May 23, it will be decided in the people's court that the "lotus brand chowkidar" is indeed the thief.

On April 15, the apex court had clarified that in its Rafale judgment, there was no occasion for it to make a mention of the contemptuous observation that "chowkidar Narendra Modi chor hai" (watchman Narendra Modi is a thief) as had been attributed to it by Gandhi.

The Congress chief expressed regret over his remarks on Monday, saying he had made the statement in the heat of political campaigning which was misused by his political opponents. He said he had no intention to lower the dignity of the apex court.

Later, in a tweet in Hindi, Gandhi targeted Modi, saying, "On May 23, it will be decided in the people's court that the 'lotus brand chowkidar' (kamalchap chowkidar) is indeed the thief. Justice will be done. The chowkidar who has looted from the poor and profited his rich friends will be punished."

The results of the ongoing Lok Sabha polls will be announced on May 23.

The Supreme Court had directed Gandhi to give his explanation on April 22 on a petition filed by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Meenakshi Lekhi seeking criminal contempt action against the Congress chief for his remarks. The top court is scheduled to hear Lekhi's petition on Tuesday.

Gandhi, who filed an affidavit in response to the apex court's April 15 order, alleged that Modi too had used the Supreme Court judgment in the Rafale fighter jet deal case to claim that the government was given a "clean chit" in the matter.