- The Surat District Court sentenced Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to two years in jail in a 2019 criminal defamation case filed against him for his alleged “Modi surname” remarks.
- The court granted him bail, and stayed its order for a period of 30 days so the Congress leader can appeal in a higher court.
- “Why all the thieves, be it Nirav Modi, Lalit Modi or Narendra Modi, have Modi in their names,” the Congress leader had allegedly said during the rally in Karnataka’s Kolar on April 13, 2019.
- Reacting to the court order, Kiren Rijiju said the Congress was “suffering” because of Gandhi’s “attitude, whatever Rahul Gandhi says always affects Congress party and the entire nation in a negative way”.
- While speaking in court, Rahul Gandhi said, “I have always raised my voice against corruption. My intention was never wrong or to hurt anyone.”
The Surat District Court sentenced Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to two years in jail in a 2019 criminal defamation case filed against him for his alleged “Modi surname” remarks. Moments later, the court granted him bail, and stayed its order for a period of 30 days so the Congress leader can appeal in a higher court.
The case was filed against Gandhi on a complaint lodged by BJP MLA and former Gujarat minister Purnesh Modi for remarks he had made at a Lok Sabha election rally in Karnataka’s Kolar on April 13, 2019. “Why all the thieves, be it Nirav Modi, Lalit Modi or Narendra Modi, have Modi in their names,” the Congress leader had allegedly said during the rally.
Reacting to the court order outside Parliament on Thursday, Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju said the Congress was “suffering” because of Gandhi’s “attitude”. “Whatever Rahul Gandhi says always affects Congress party and the entire nation in a negative way,” he told news agency ANI.
On Friday, Chief Judicial Magistrate HH Verma heard the final arguments in the defamation case. Gandhi had last appeared before the Surat court in the case, filed under Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 499 and 500 (dealing with defamation), in October 2021 to record his statement.
After the court announced the sentence, Rahul Gandhi’s legal team filed a bail plea which was granted to the Congress MP.
The Gandhi scion had made the remark while campaigning in Karnataka’s Kolar ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections. “I have a question. Why do all thieves have Modi in their names, whether it is Nirav Modi, Lalit Modi or Narendra Modi? We don’t know how many more such Modis will come out,” Rahul Gandhi had said.
While speaking in court on Thursday, Rahul Gandhi said, “I have always raised my voice against corruption. My intention was never wrong or to hurt anyone.”
