INDIA. Mumbai: Justice Hemant Prachchhak at the Gujarat High Court on Friday rejected the appeal of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi against his conviction by the Surat Session Court in the criminal defamation case for his ‘Modi Thieves’ remarks.
Gandhi, during the 2019 Lok Sabha campaign meetings, had allegedly said that “Why do all thieves have Modi in their names”.
Based on a complaint filed by Purnesh Ishvarbhai Modi, On March 23, the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Surat, convicted and sentenced Gandhi to 2 years imprisonment, following which he was disqualified as a member of Lok Sabha. However, his sentence was suspended, and he was granted bail on the same day to enable him to move an appeal against his conviction within 30 days.
On April 03, Gandhi approached the Surat Sessions Court seeking a stay on his conviction, which was rejected on April 20. However, the court granted him bail till the disposal of his appeal.
On Friday, the Gujarat High Court refused to stay Gandhi’s conviction and said that Gandhi, in his speech, made a false statement to affect the poll results and further suggested Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s name, only to add sensation to it.
The court further stated that the case would also fall under the category of moral turpitude because Gandhi violated the moral code by using false information to influence the election while serving as a member of parliament, holding a prominent position in society, and being bound by law not to scandalise anyone.
The court noted that if the conviction is not stayed, no injustice will be caused to Gandhi. The court also observed that Gandhi has 10 criminal cases to his name, which included the complaint filed by Veer Savarkar’s grandson in Pune Court in view of his repeated defamatory remark, where he labelled Savarkar as “Mafiveer Savarkar”.
However, the court requested the concerned district judge to decide the criminal appeal on its merits and according to law as expeditiously as possible.
The rejection of Gandhi’s appeal by the Gujarat High Court evoked angry reaction from the Congress workers across Maharashtra, including Mumbai.
The workers staged protest demonstrations carrying placards. During one of such agitations, Mumbai Congress President and former minister in MVA Government Varsha Gaikwad was arrested by police.
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