Defamation case: Surat court likely to give its verdict today on Rahul Gandhi’s plea for a stay on his conviction

Rahul Gandhi had on April 3 moved the sessions court against the lower court’s order. His lawyers also filed two applications, one for a stay on the sentence (or bail till the disposal of his appeal) and another for a stay on conviction till the disposal of the appeal.While granting Rahul Gandhi bail, the court issued notices to complainant Purnesh Modi and the state government on his plea for a stay on conviction. It heard both parties on Thursday last week and reserved the order for April 20.

In his submission, Rahul Gandhi said that if the March 23 judgment of the trial court is not suspended and stayed, it will cause irreparable damage to his reputation. He said the excessive sentence is contrary to the law on the subject and unwarranted in the present case which has overriding political overtones.

Gandhi termed his conviction as “erroneous” and “patently perverse” and said the trial court treated him harshly after being overwhelmingly influenced by his status as an MP.

“The appellant has been treated harshly at the stage of determination of sentence taking into account his position as a Member of Parliament, hence the far-reaching implications would have been in the knowledge of the trial court,” he said.

MLA Purnesh Modi had filed a criminal defamation case against Gandhi over his remarks, “How come all thieves have Modi as the common surname?” made during an election rally at Kolar in Karnataka on April 13, 2019.

The 52-year-old politician was elected to the Lok Sabha from Wayanad in Kerala in 2019 but was disqualified a day after a metropolitan magistrate court in Surat on March 23 sentenced him to two years in jail in a case filed by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Purnesh Modi under sections 499 and 500 (defamation) of the Indian Penal Code.

Arguing for Gandhi’s plea for a stay on conviction, his lawyer told the court that the trial in the case was “not fair” and there was no need for maximum punishment in the case.

The Congress leader said that he was sentenced in a manner so as to attract the order of disqualification because the trial court was well aware of his status as a Parliamentarian.

The bye-election once held in Gandhi’s Lok Sabha constituency due to his disqualification cannot be undone if his conviction is not stayed even if the court subsequently acquits him, he said. Such an election will also cause irreparable loss to the state exchequer, he said.

Opposing his plea, MLA Modi had told the court that Gandhi is a repeat offender with several criminal defamation proceedings against him going on in different courts across the country.

Rahul Gandhi lost membership in the Lower House of Parliament after the Surat court convicted and sentenced him in a 2019 criminal defamation case.

The case pertained to a remark he made using the surname ‘Modi’ while addressing a campaign event ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

At a rally in Karnataka’s Kolar in April 2019, Rahul, in a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said, “How come all the thieves have Modi as the common surname?”.

Following his conviction, Rahul was disqualified as an MP on March 24, as per a Supreme Court ruling in 2013. Under the ruling, any MP or MLA is automatically disqualified if convicted and sentenced to two years or more

*WIth agency inputs