Gujarat HC dismisses Rahul Gandhi’s plea to suspend conviction in defamation case

On 7th July 2023, Gujarat High Court dismissed Rahul Gandhi’s plea to stay the conviction in the criminal defamation suit in the ‘Modi Surname’ case. Justice Hemant Prachchhak refused to stay Rahul Gandhi’s conviction.

Notably, the conviction in the case resulted in his disqualification as a Member of Parliament. Rahul Gandhi was an elected member of Lok Sabha from the Wayanad constituency of Kerala. He won that seat in the 2019 general elections. The court dismissing the review plea by the Congress scion will prolong his disqualification till he gets relief from the apex court.

Justice Hemant Prachchhak said in his order, “Rahul Gandhi is seeking a stay on conviction on absolutely non-existent grounds. Stay on conviction is not a rule. As many as 10 cases are pending against him.”

The court further observed, “It is needed to have purity in politics. A complaint has been filed against Rahul Gandhi by the grandson of Veer Savarkar in Pune Court after Rahul Gandhi used terms against Veer Savarkar at Cambridge.”

The court ruled, “In any way, the conviction would not result in any injustice. The conviction is just and proper. There is no need to interfere with the said order. Therefore, the application is dismissed.”

Justice Hemant Prachchhak reserved his order on the stay application on May 2, after hearing senior advocates Abhishek M Singhvi and RS Cheema, who represented Rahul Gandhi. The case was subsequently closed for judgment. Senior Advocate Nirupam Nanavati made submissions on behalf of the complainant Purnesh Modi, a former BJP MLA. The Gujarat Government also opposed Rahul Gandhi’s plea, with Public Prosecutor Mithesh Amin presenting their arguments.

The criminal defamation case was filed over a remark made by Gandhi during the 2019 Lok Sabha campaign. Referring to persons like Lalit Modi, and Nirav Modi, Rahul Gandhi had asked “Why do all thieves have the same surname?.”

‘Rahul’s statement targeted the entire Modi community’

After BJP MLA and former Gujarat minister Purnesh Modi accused Rahul Gandhi of defaming the entire Modi community with his comment, a criminal defamation case was filed against Gandhi. Subsequently, on March 23, 2023, the Court of Chief Judicial Magistrates in Surat found Rahul Gandhi guilty and sentenced him to 2 years imprisonment, resulting in his disqualification as a member of Lok Sabha. However, his sentence was suspended on the same day, and he was granted bail, allowing him to file an appeal against his conviction within 30 days.

On April 3, Rahul Gandhi approached the Surat Sessions Court to challenge his conviction and requested a stay on the verdict. However, his plea for a stay was rejected on April 20. Nonetheless, the Surat Sessions Court granted him bail until his appeal is resolved.

Source: OpIndia