Supreme Court overturns Rahul Gandhi's conviction in defamation case



On Friday, the Supreme Court stayed Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's conviction in a criminal defamation case related to a "Modi surname" statement and reinstated his membership in Parliament. 

The supreme court noted that the trial judge had no justification for imposing the maximum sentence of two years.

It was underlined that Gandhi's disqualification affects not just him but also the electorates in his constituency.

However, the Supreme Court advised Gandhi that he should have exercised greater prudence in making the purported statements.

On Friday, the Supreme Court heard Rahul Gandhi's petition challenging the Gujarat High Court's decision to uphold his conviction in a defamation case based on his "Modi surname" statement. Rahul Gandhi was barred from running for office earlier this year after making statements against Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Meanwhile, senior counsel Mahesh Jethmalani, who is representing complainant Purnesh Modi, claims that the entire speech lasted more than 50 minutes and that the Election Commission of India's record has a multitude of evidence and speech clippings.

Rahul Gandhi, according to Jethmalani, has defamed a whole class out of hatred.

In response to the arguments, the Supreme Court stated that the conviction has an impact on the constituency.

The Supreme Court has stated that it wishes to know why the maximum punishment was imposed. The Supreme Court notes that if the court had imposed a term of one year and eleven months, Rahul Gandhi would not have been disqualified.

The court also stated that Gandhi should have exercised greater caution when delivering the alleged statements.

Purnesh Modi, a BJP leader and former Gujarat minister, filed a criminal defamation action against Gandhi in 2019 after his comment, "How come all thieves have Modi as the common surname?" made during an electoral rally in Kolar, Karnataka, on April 13, 2019.