Lucknow, Feb. 21 -- Rahul Gandhi, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha and Congress MP from Rae Bareli, on Friday appeared before an MP-MLA court in Sultanpur and recorded his statement in a 2018 defamation case related to his allegedly derogatory remarks against Union home minister Amit Shah, who was then the Bharatiya Janata Party national president.

The remarks were allegedly made at a press conference in Karnataka during the 2018 assembly polls.

Gandhi told the court of special judge Shubham Verma that the allegations against him were made out of political malice and with an aim to destroy his image and that of his party, said his advocate Kashi Prasad Shukla, according to a PTI report.

Elaborating on the statement given in court,...