'Isn't it exceptional…': Shashi Tharoor on court dismissing Rahul Gandhi's plea

The BJP celebrated the Surat Court's dismissal of Rahul Gandhi's plea and said it's the defeat of Congress's arrogance and ecosystem.

Congress MP Shashi Tharoor on Thursday reacted to the Surat Court's dismissal of Rahul Gandhi's plea seeking a stay on his conviction in the 2019 defamation case. Tharoor said the Surat court said Rahul Gandhi has not been able to show any exceptional circumstances to grant astay on conviction. "Isn't it exceptional enough to get a 2 years sentence for criminal defamation? Just long enough to be disqualified from Parliament," Tharoor tweeted. Read | Rahul Gandhi's appeal for conviction stay rejected, Cong to avail other options

A sessions court on Thursday dismissed Rahul Gandhi's plea seeking stay on his conviction in 2019 defamation case. (PTI)

BJP's Sambit Patra at a press conference on Thursday said the rejection of Rahul Gandhi's petition is a victory of the common people and a defeat of the arrogance and the ecosystem of the Congress. "The Congress did a mobilisation after Rahul Gandhi's conviction across the country and abroad," Sambit Patra said.

If the sessions court stayed the conviction, Rahul Gandhi would have been reinstated in Parliament.

Complainant Purnesh Modi's lawyer Harshit Toliya said the sessions court observed that this is not an exceptional case and merely being an MP is not a ground for the suspension of the conviction. In his appeal, Rahul Gandhi said that the trial was not fair and that his disqualification from Parliament meant an irreparable loss. Purnesh Modi, on the other hand, opposed the plea and said Rahul Gandhi is a repeat offender and is not regretful for his 'Modi surname' remark.