LUCKNOW: Ahead of a hearing in a defamation case, leader of opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi reached Lucknow on Tuesday.

The case relates to alleged defamatory remarks against Indian soldiers during the Bharat Jodo Yatra, his lawyer advocate Pranshu Agarwal said.

Gandhi was said to have reached Lucknow airport at around 1 pm and was headed to the special MP/MLA court accompanied by party's state unit president Ajay Rai and in-charge Avinash Pande.

"He (Gandhi) is scheduled to attend the court hearing and would return to Delhi later in the day. He is likely to come to Uttar Pradesh again to visit his constituency Raebareli over the next few days," Rai told reporters.

Security was beefed up along the route of his travel and in and around the court premises.

The court summoned Gandhi as an accused, taking cognisance of the complaint filed by Uday Shankar Srivastava, a retired director of the Border Roads Organisation (equivalent to the rank of colonel in the Army).

The complaint states that on December 16, 2022, Gandhi, while addressing various media personnel and the public during the Bharat Jodo Yatra, mentioned the clash between the Indian Army and the Chinese Army on the border of Arunachal Pradesh on December 9 (2022) and said that "people will ask what all about Bharat Jodo Yatra, but will not ask even once about the beating of our soldiers by Chinese soldiers".

The complainant alleged his sentiments were hurt by Gandhi's statement about the alleged beating of Indian soldiers by the Chinese soldiers.

On February 11, the special court ordered Gandhi to be summoned on charges of defamation.