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Rahul Gandhi case highlights: Political row erupts over Surat court's verdict
Rahul Gandhi defamation case highlights: Rahul Gandhi was present at the Surat court on Thursday as it convicted him in a defamation case dating back to 2019.
A local court in Gujarat's Surat given a two-year term to Congress MP Rahul Gandhi for a comment which he made in Karnataka ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections where he wondered how ‘all thieves have Modi as the common surname’. The verdict has been suspended for 30 days, on request of his legal team, to give him a chance to appeal the guilty verdict....Read More
The court's verdict became a rallying point for opposition leaders, including Delhi and Jharkhand chief ministers Arvind Kejriwal and Hemant Soren, to protest against the order. Similarly the Bharatiya Janata Party has welcomed the order and criticised Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge for questioning the judgement.
What now for Rahul Gandhi?
An elected representative sentenced for any offence for two years or more faces immediate disqualification under the Representation of Peoples Act, 1951.
A provision that granted three months' protection from disqualification was struck down in 2013 as 'ultra vires' by the Supreme Court in the Lily Thomas case. In Gandhi's case, the court that found him guilty suspended its sentence for 30 days - on request - to give him a chance to challenge its decision.
This means the disqualification will kick in a month later, unless Gandhi can get a stay on the conviction (and sentence) from another court.
Rahul Gandhi cannot approach the Gujarat High Court or Supreme Court at this time since this is a criminal case, but a third party could - on grounds the procedure and manner of the Surat court's ruling hurt the larger public interest.
