The Gujarat High Court upheld the order denying a stay on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s conviction in a defamation case involving his 2019 Modi surname remark, and the Congress party on Friday said it will appeal that decision to the Supreme Court, rejecting Gandhi’s request.
“The Gujarat High Court denied Rahul Gandhi’s review petition earlier on Friday, ruling that “there is no reasonable ground to stay the conviction.”
“The trial court’s order is just, proper and legal and there is no need to interfere with the said order. The disqualification is not limited to only MPs and MLAs,” the high court bench said.
The court emphasised that the stay of conviction is an exception rather than a rule in exceptional situations and noted that Rahul Gandhi has other criminal matters that are still ongoing.
Rahul Gandhi received a two-year prison term after being found guilty of criminal defamation by Surat Chief Judicial Magistrate HH Varma in March. Rahul was later declared ineligible to serve in the Lok Sabha.
In the defamation case, Rahul Gandhi was accused of making offensive statements at a rally in Kolar, Karnataka, prior to the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. He had said, “How come all the thieves have Modi as their common surname?”
Purnesh Modi, a BJP MLA and former Gujarat minister, brought the charge against Gandhi.
After Gandhi was granted bail, his attorney Kirit Panwala filed an appeal against the verdict at the Surat Additional Session Court presided over by Justice RP Mogera.
Rahul Gandhi was granted bail by the Surat Sessions Court, however the conviction was not overturned on April 20. He subsequently went to the Gujarat High Court to appeal the ruling.
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