Rahul Gandhi disqualified as Member of Lok Sabha after Surat court sentencing in defamation case

In a major setback, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday was disqualified as a Member of Lok Sabha from the date of his conviction (March 23) in the criminal defamation case over his 'Modi surname' remark. He was found guilty of violating Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 499 and 500 by the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate HH Varma.

Congress MP Rahul Gandhi on Friday was disqualified as Lok Sabha MP, a day after a Gujarat court sentenced him to two-year jail in a 2019 defamation case. The Wayanad MP was convicted over his "why all thieves have Modi surname" remark.

On March 23, the leader was sentenced to two years in jail by a Surat court in a 2019 criminal defamation case over his “Modi surname" remark. Gandhi, 52, was found guilty of violating Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 499 and 500 by the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate HH Varma.

The judge also gave Gandhi bail and deferred the punishment for 30 days so that he may appeal to a higher court. Gandhi had the option of limiting his remarks to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Nirav Modi, Vijay Mallya, and Mehul Choksi, but instead, the court found that Gandhi "intentionally" made a comment that was hurtful to people with the Modi surname and so engaged in criminal defamation. Gandhi was in the courtroom when the decision was made.

The case was filed against Rahul Gandhi for his alleged “how come all the thieves have Modi as the common surname?” He stated this while addressing a rally at Kolar in Karnataka ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. Notably, the complaint against his remarks was lodged by BJP MLA and former Gujarat minister Purnesh Modi.