SURAT: Congress chief Rahul Gandhi was on Thursday convicted by a courtroom in Gujarat’s Surat in a felony defamation case filed in opposition to him over his alleged ‘All thieves have Modi surname’ remarks made by him in 2019. The courtroom of Chief Judicial Magistrate HH Varma held Rahul Gandhi responsible beneath Section 504 of the Indian Penal Code, which offers with intentional insult with intent to impress a breach of peace. Rahul Gandhi, at the moment the Congress MP from Wayanad, was current within the courtroom when the decision was pronounced. The courtroom sentenced Rahul Gandhi to 2 years in jail however he has been launched on bail so he can enchantment the decision.
What Options Does Rahul Gandhi Have After Conviction?
In view of his conviction within the case, the query being requested is what choices Rahul Gandhi is left with now and whether or not he’ll lose his Lok Sabha membership. Social media is abuzz with questions if the Representation of People Act can be relevant to him or not.
Though the Congress chief has been sentenced to 2 years in jail, he conviction has, nevertheless, been stored in abeyance. The Surat courtroom has granted him time to file an enchantment in opposition to the identical. Chief Judicial Magistrate HH Varma, in his order, mentioned that Rahil Gandhi can enchantment in opposition to his conviction and sentencing inside 30 days – implying that his Lok Sabha membership will stay intact till the upper courtroom decides on the matter.
SC Ruling In Lily Thomas vs Union of India Case
It could also be famous that the Supreme Court, in its verdict in 2013 within the Lily Thomas vs Union of India case, has mentioned {that a} Member of Parliament or Member of the Legislative Assembly and a Member of the Legislative Council who’s convicted of a criminal offense and given a minimal punishment of two years imprisonment, loses membership of the House with fast impact. The high courtroom additionally declared Section 8(4) of the Representation of People Act, which allowed elected representatives three months to enchantment their conviction. Section 500 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) which offers with defamations says, “whoever defames another shall be punished with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to two years, or with a fine of both.”
Before the highest courtroom ruling got here, convicted lawmakers continued to take pleasure in the identical privileges as MPs or MLAs till they exhausted all their judicial cures. In 2013, an try was made to overturn the choice of the Supreme Court, and The Representation of People (Second Amendment and Validation) Bill 2013 was tabled within the Rajya Sabha.
The proposed modification said that representatives wouldn’t be disqualified instantly after conviction. The Congress-led UPA authorities unsuccessfully filed a evaluate petition within the Supreme Court.
Just days forward of the fodder rip-off verdict, the federal government tried to carry a Bill into impact as an ordinance, nevertheless, the transfer was strongly resisted by Rahul Gandhi himself, who referred to as it “complete nonsense.”
Ever for the reason that verdict of the Supreme Court, 11 elected representatives have been disqualified after their conviction by courts. Pappu Kalani, Jagdish Sharma, Lalu Prasad Yadav, Rasheed Masood, Asha Rani, Enos Ekkka, Babanrao Galop, T M Selvaganapathy, Suresh Halvankar, Kamal Kishore and J Jayalalithaa are those that have been disqualified after their conviction by courts.
What Did Rahul Gandhi Actually Say?
Apparently taking a jibe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Congress MP, whereas addressing a rally at Kolar in Karnataka forward of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, mentioned, “how come all the thieves have Modi as the common surname?” Raising robust objections to his remarks, a case was filed in opposition to him by former Gujarat minister Purnesh Modi. Rahul Gandhi was booked beneath Sections 499 and 500 (defamation). He had final appeared earlier than the Surat courtroom in October 2021 and report his assertion.
Who Filed The Case Against Rahul Gandhi?
The case in opposition to Rahul Gandhi was filed beneath IPC sections 499, 500 (for felony defamation), and 504 on a grievance lodged by BJP MLA and former Gujarat minister Purnesh Modi. These sections invite a jail time period of as much as two years or high quality or each.
Who Is Purnesh Modi?
Purnesh Modi was a minister within the first tenure of the Bhupendra Patel authorities. He was re-elected from the Surat West Assembly seat within the December elections. In 2019, when Purnesh Modi filed the case in opposition to him, Rahul Gandhi shrugged it off as a ‘determined’ transfer by his political rivals to ‘silence’ him.
What Were the Arguments Of Rahul Gandhi’s Lawyer?
Rahul Gandhi’s lawyer has argued earlier than the courtroom that authorized proceedings in opposition to his shopper had been “flawed” from the start. The lawyer additionally argued that Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and never MLA Purnesh Modi, ought to have been the complainant within the case as a result of the PM was the principle goal of Gandhi’s speech.
The courtroom concluded the ultimate arguments from either side and set March 23 because the date to pronounce its judgment within the four-year-old defamation case. Senior Congress chief and MLA Arjun Modhwadia mentioned final week that the reality was being put to check and harassed. He claimed the BJP foisted false circumstances in opposition to Gandhi.
Meanwhile, the ruling BJP has welcomed the conviction and sentencing of Rahul Gandhi within the Modi Surname case.
