Gujarat HC rejects stay on Rahul Gandhi's conviction in defamation case
HY News
07 July, 2023 11:43 am IST
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The Gujarat High Court on Friday dismissed Rahul Gandhi's plea seeking a stay on his conviction in a criminal defamation case over his Modi surname remark.
With this order, Gandhi will continue to remain suspended as a Member of Parliament (MP) and he will not be able to contest elections. He can appeal the larger bench of the Gujarat High Court and Supreme Court.
The court said that the Trial Court conviction order is proper and there is no need to interfere with the said order. "Therefore, the application is dismissed”, the Court announced.
A stay on conviction would have paved the way for Gandhi's reinstatement as a Member of Parliament (MP). In May, Justice Prachchhak, while hearing Gandhi's plea, had refused to grant any interim relief saying it will pass a final order after the summer vacation, which ended three weeks back.
A metropolitan magistrate's court in Surat sentenced the former Congress president to two years in jail on March 23 after convicting him under Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 499 and 500 (criminal defamation) in a 2019 case filed by Bharatiya Janata Party MLA Purnesh Modi.
Following the verdict, Gandhi, elected to the Lok Sabha from Wayanad in Kerala, was disqualified as MP under the provisions of the Representation of the People Act.
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