Rahul Gandhi to Remain Disqualified as MP After Gujarat HC Dismisses Plea

The Gujarat High Court on Friday dismissed Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s petition seeking a stay on his conviction in a criminal defamation case over his remarks about the “Modi surname”.

The court’s decision means that Gandhi will continue to remain disqualified as a Member of Parliament. He had been sentenced to two years in jail by a Surat court in April 2023.

Background

In 2019, while campaigning for the Lok Sabha elections, Rahul Gandhi made a controversial remark about the Prime Minister’s surname. He said, “How come all thieves have the common surname Modi?” This was a reference to the fact that the Prime Minister shares his surname with two fugitive businessmen, Nirav Modi and Lalit Modi, who are both accused of financial crimes.

The Modi family filed a defamation case against Gandhi, and he was convicted by a Surat court in April 2023. Gandhi appealed the conviction, but the Gujarat High Court has now dismissed his petition. The court’s decision means that Gandhi will continue to remain disqualified as an MP. He will also be ineligible to contest elections for the next six years.

In his petition, Gandhi argued that the conviction was “unjust and illegal” and that it should be stayed pending the outcome of his appeal in the Supreme Court. He had also said that the conviction would prevent him from discharging his duties as an MP.

However, the Gujarat High Court rejected Gandhi’s plea, saying that there were no grounds to stay the conviction. The court also noted that Gandhi had not apologized for his remarks, which it said had “caused great damage to the reputation of the Modi family”.

The decision is a major blow to Gandhi and the Congress party. It comes at a time when the party is already facing a number of challenges, including the upcoming assembly elections in Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh.