Surat court to pronounce order on April 20 on Rahul Gandhi’s plea for stay on conviction in a defamation case. The Congress leader had filed a plea for a stay on his conviction in the defamation case over his “Modi surname” remark in which he has been sentenced to two years in jail.
BJP MLA and complainant Purnesh Modi, in his reply filed earlier in the same court, opposed Gandhi’s plea for a stay on conviction saying the Congress leader is a “repetitive offender” who is in the habit of making defamatory statements.
On Thursday, arguments from both sides commenced in the court of Additional Sessions Judge RP Mogera.
Surat Court on March 23 sentenced the Congress leader to two years in jail after holding him guilty for his remark “How come all thieves have Modi as the common surname” made during an election rally in 2019.
Though the court on 3 April granted bail to Gandhi in the case. It agreed to keep hearing his plea for a stay of conviction on April 13 after issuing a notice to MLA Modi as well as the Gujarat government.
Rahul Gandhi, who was disqualified as a Member of Parliament after the conviction, has filed an appeal before the sessions court against the verdict.
He was then disqualified from the Lok Sabha under the provisions of the Representation of the People Act, 1951. Under this Act, an MP or a member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) who has been convicted of an offence and sentenced to imprisonment for a term of not less than two years shall be disqualified from the date of conviction. Unless his conviction is stayed by a higher court, the leader cannot contest elections for eight years.
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