No Relief For Rahul Gandhi As Gujarat High Court Refuses To Stay His Conviction In Defamation Case
The Gujarat HC bench of Justice Hemant Prachchhak noted that the order by the trial court in Surat convicting him was proper. The HC further noted that there were at least 10 criminal cases pending against Gandhi.
In a major setback for former Congress Party President Rahul Gandhi, the Gujarat High Court refused to stay his conviction in a criminal defamation case on Friday.
The Gujarat HC bench of Justice Hemant Prachchhak noted that the order by the trial court in Surat convicting him was proper, and there was no need to interfere with the said order.
BCCL
What Rahul Gandhi's lawyer argued
The HC further noted that there were at least 10 criminal cases pending against Rahul Gandhi.
In May, Justice Prachchhak, while hearing Gandhi's plea, had refused to grant any interim relief saying it will pass a final order after the summer vacation, which ended three weeks back.
During a hearing on April 29, Gandhi's lawyer had argued that a maximum punishment of two years for a bailable, non-cognisable offence meant his client could lose his Lok Sabha seat "permanently and irreversibly", which was a "very serious additional irreversible consequence to the person and the constituency he represents".
BCCL
Modi surname case
A metropolitan magistrate's court in Surat sentenced the former Congress president to two years in jail on March 23 after convicting him under Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 499 and 500 (criminal defamation) in a 2019 case filed by BJP MLA Purnesh Modi.
Following the verdict, Gandhi, elected to the Lok Sabha from Wayanad in Kerala, was disqualified as MP under the provisions of the Representation of the People Act.
Gandhi challenged the order in a sessions court in Surat along with an application seeking a stay on the conviction. While granting him bail, the court, on April 20, refused to stay the conviction, after which he approached the high court.
Who is the complainant
Purnesh Modi, the Surat West MLA, filed a criminal defamation case against Gandhi over his "How come all thieves have Modi as the common surname?" remark made during an election rally at Kolar in Karnataka on April 13, 2019.
BCCL
What Surat court said
In his judgement, Additional sessions judge Robin P Mogera had cited Gandhi's stature as an MP and former chief of the country's second-largest political party and said he should have been more careful.
He cited prima facie evidence and observations of the trial court and said it transpires that Gandhi made certain derogatory remarks against Prime Minister Narendra Modi apart from comparing people with the same surname with thieves.
purnesh modi
Justice Mogera said the surname of the complainant in the case, Purnesh Modi, is also Modi. "...the complainant is [also an] ex-minister and involved in public life, and such defamatory remarks would have certainly harmed his reputation and caused him pain and agony in society," he said.
Justice Mogera cited the disqualification criteria under the Representation of the People Act and added that removal or disqualification as MP could not be termed irreversible or irreparable loss or damage to Gandhi.
For more on news, sports and current affairs from around the world, please visit Indiatimes News.
Bobins Abraham is the Assistant News Editor at Indiatimes. He has more than twelve years of experience in TV and digital journalism. An avid student of history and geopolitics, he is a conservationist and environmentalist at heart. He writes on environment, sustainability, human-animal conflict and more.
Read More