Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Apr 20: In a massive setback for Rahul Gandhi, a sessions court in Surat, Gujarat, on Thursday dismissed the appeal by the Congress leader for a stay on his conviction in a criminal defamation case over his 2019 “Modi surname” remark.
The dismissal of the appeal would mean that Gandhi’s disqualification as a member of the Lok Sabha representing Wayanad constituency in Kerala continue and he cannot be reinstated as MP.
The complaint was filed by BJP Gujarat MLA Purnesh Modi for the remark Gandhi made at an election meeting in Kolar in Karnataka during the 2019 Parliamentary elections. Shortly after sessions court’s verdict, the Congress leader Jairam Ramesh stated that they would will “continue to avail all options still available to us under the law.” Gandhi will now have to approach the Gujarat High Court or Supreme Court for relief.
The BJP called the sessions court’s verdict a “slap on the face of the Gandhi family and demanded that Rahul Gandhi apologise to the OBC community.
The sessions court had earlier granted bail to Gandhi and suspended his two-year jail sentence pronounced by a metropolitan magistrate court on March 23, till the disposal of his appeal seeking a stay on his conviction.
Rahul Gandhi had requested that his conviction be paused pending his appeal against a court order sentencing him to two years in jail. The trial court, said the Congress leader, had treated him harshly, overwhelmingly influenced by his status as an MP, but the Surat sessions court disagreed.
“Rahul Gandhi failed to demonstrate that by not staying the conviction and denying an opportunity to contest the election, an irreversible and irrevocable damage will be caused to him,” said trial court judge Robin Mogera.
The judge also quoted the Supreme Court as saying that decisions to pause conviction should be exercised with caution and “not in a casual and mechanical manner… that will shake public confidence in the judiciary.”
Rahul Gandhi had made “certain derogatory remarks against Prime Minister Narendra Modi in general public and further compared the persons having ‘Modi’ surname with thieves and the complainant is also having surname of Modi,” judge Mogera said.
“The Appellant was not an ordinary person and was a sitting MP, connected with public life. Any word spoken by the appellant would have a large impact in the mind of the common public,” the judge asserted, adding that a “high standard of morality” was expected from a person like him.
Rahul Gandhi, 52, was convicted by a court and sentenced to prison for two years in Gujarat on March 23 for his speech during the 2019 Lok Sabha campaign. BJP MLA and former Gujarat minister Purnesh Modi had filed the case over Rahul Gandhi saying: “How come all thieves have the common surname Modi?” The lower court had granted Mr Gandhi bail for 30 days to appeal the verdict.
Gandhi had approached the sessions court on April 3 against the lower court’s order. His lawyers also filed two applications, one to hold the sentence and another to pause his conviction until a decision on his appeal.
The Congress leader argued that the sentence was excessive and contrary to law, and that if the order was not suspended, it would cause “irreparable damage” to his reputation. He also said he was sentenced in a way that he would be disqualified as a parliamentarian. The judge said he did not agree that Mr Gandhi was deprived of a fair trial.
Soon after the Surat court’s verdict, the union Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur said Rahul Gandhi still has time to seek an apology from the nation, “Surat court rejecting Rahul Gandhi’s plea to stay his conviction in the defamation case has once again proved that the Congress dynast intentionally insulted the OBC community of India in the name of abusing & attacking PM Sri Narendra Modi,” Thakur said. “Rahul Gandhi still has time to seek an apology from the nation,” he added.
Addressing a press conference following the Surat court’s decision, senior leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi said the party would continue to avail all options still available under the law. “A wrong verdict has been affirmed. We will use our alternatives. The whole of India is seeing that the BJP is misusing the OBC community for its narrow and cheap political gains. Rahul Gandhi’s voice cannot be silenced the way BJP thinks… He has not spoken anything remotely defamatory in this case and will continue to speak for the people,” he added.
The PDP president Mehbooba Mufti on Thursday lashed out at the BJP after the court order saying it was a “black day” for Indian democracy. She also charged that opposition leaders are being hounded, saying they are either in jails or will be sent to jail. “Today is a black day in the democratic history of the country, which takes pride in being mother of democracy. The way Rahul Gandhi is being treated shows that BJP wants to end democracy. They want to establish one party system — The BJP ‘Rashtra’ — by sidelining the Constitution,” she told reporters.
Reacting to the Surat court dismissing Rahul Gandhi’s appeal, BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra said: “Today’s judgement clarified that the Constitution triumphs in India and not dynastic politics. This is a slap on the face of the Gandhi family. Today, the Surat court proved that the law is the same for everyone and no one is above it. This is a blow to the arrogance of the Gandhi family and a victory for the common people of India.”
“The Surat Court says Rahul Gandhi has not been able to show any exceptional circumstances to grant stay on conviction. Isn’t it exceptional enough to get a two year sentence for criminal defamation? Just long enough to be disqualified from Parliament?” senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor tweeted.
Gandhi’s disqualification can still be reversed if the High Court grants a stay on the conviction by the magistrate’s court or decides the appeal against the sessions court’s order in his favour.
Shortly after the Surat court dismissed Rahul Gandhi’s plea, BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla hit out at the Congress party, saying, “Will Congress now call this vendetta too? Will they raise question on courts again? Will they finally junk their arrogance and apologise to the OBC community rather than question the judiciary?”
Attacking Rahul, BJP spokesperson Amit Malviya said, “Despite having insulted the OBC community, calling them all ‘chor’, Rahul, shamefully remains defiant… His arrogant attitude reeks of entitlement.”
