Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was sentenced to two years in jail by the Surat court on Thursday, in a criminal defamation case against him filed in 2019. However, the court also granted him bail and suspended the sentence for 30 days to allow him to appeal in a higher court.
The criminal defamation case was related to his “Modi surname” remark, which he had made back in 2019 during a rally in Karnataka’s Kolar district. The court of Chief Judicial Magistrate HH Varma held Gandhi guilty under Indian Penal Code sections 499 and 500, a PTI report said.
Here’s all you need to know about the case:
- During an address ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections in Karnataka, Rahul Gandhi made the remark, “How come all the thieves have Modi as the common surname?” The remark had sparked controversy back then, alleging defamation and a caste bias by several people.
- Gujarat Minister and Surat West Bharatiya Janata Party MLA Purnesh Modi had filed a criminal defamation case against Rahul Gandhi over the remarks. After Surat court’s order on Thursday, Modi welcomed the verdict.
- The final arguments resumed in the case last month after the Gujarat High Court vacated its stay on proceedings imposed on plea by the complainant demanding Gandhi’s personal appearance.
- A case was lodged against Rahul Gandhi and a case was filed against him under Sections 499 and 500 (dealing with defamation) of the IPC.
- Rahul Gandhi had last appeared before the Surat court in the case in October 2021 to record his statement. Before that, the Congress MP had appeared in the court to plead not guilty to charges levelled against him.
- Notably, Union Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad alleged that through his remarks, Gandhi insulted an entire community and not just one surname.
A war of words continued between the BJP and Congress over the issue after the Surat court’s order. State Congress leaders, including GPCC president Jagdish Thakor, legislature party leader Amit Chavda, senior leader Arjun Modhwadia, and AICC in-charge of Gujarat Raghu Sharma, were at Surat airport to receive Gandhi.
A huge number of party functionaries had assembled at various spots in the city as a show of strength and support for Gandhi, with posters extolling him as ‘Sher-e-Hindustan’ (lion of Hindustan) and placards declaring that the “Congress will not bow before the dictatorship of the BJP” on display.
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