India, Aug. 18 -- The hearing in a defamation case against Rahul Gandhi, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, was postponed on Monday due to a lawyers' strike, with the court setting August 21 for the next hearing, a lawyer said.

Proceedings could not take place before the MP-MLA court here because lawyers abstained from work following an emergency meeting and resolution by the Sultanpur Bar Association, said Santosh Kumar Pandey, counsel for complainant Vijay Mishra.

"In view of the absence of advocates, the court has fixed August 21 as the next date of hearing," Pandey said. Further legal proceedings will be taken up when the case file is produced before the court on that date, he said.

The defamation complaint relates to remarks a...