Rahul Gandhi moves Supreme Court in Modi surname defamation case after High Court snub

Mangalore Today News Network

New Delhi, July 15, 2023: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who was convicted and sentenced to two years in prison in a defamation case in March this year, has now challenged the decision of the Surat court in the Supreme Court.

 

Earlier, the Gujarat High Court had dismissed Rahul Gandhi’s plea seeking a stay on his conviction.

A criminal defamation case was filed against Gandhi by BJP Gujarat MLA Purnesh Modi, following his remarks made during a 2019 Karnataka election rally regarding the surname, Modi.

The Surat court had pronounced Rahul Gandhi guilty and handed him a two-year sentence along with a fine. Both the Surat district court and the Gujarat High Court have refused to grant any reprieve and quash the conviction, while also censuring Rahul Gandhi.

Rahul Gandhi’s team had been waiting for the conclusion of the Supreme Court’s summer vacation period in order to challenge the conviction.

Meanwhile, Purnesh Modi has filed a caveat in the Supreme Court, insisting that his arguments should also be heard when Rahul Gandhi or any concerned party challenges the decision of the Gujarat High Court. The caveat stressed that the court should not make any decision without granting Purnesh Modi an opportunity to present his side.

A metropolitan magistrate’s court in Surat on March 23 sentenced Rahul Gandhi to two years in jail after convicting him under Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 499 and 500 (criminal defamation) in a 2019 case filed by BJP Gujarat MLA Purnesh Modi.

The MLA had 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.

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.

Courtesy: India Today