Delhi: Rahul Gandhi, who has been sentenced to jail in the case of defaming the name of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, his MP. Parliamentary sources say that he may lose his post.
A Surat court has sentenced Rahul Gandhi to 2 years in prison in a defamation case related to his defamation of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s name during the 2019 election campaign.
Rahul Gandhi has also been granted bail in this case. He has been granted bail on a bond of Rs.10,000. Surat Sessions Court suspends Rahul Gandhi’s sentence for 30 days The sentence has been stayed pending an appeal to the High Court.
MP Rahul to lose post?: Rahul Gandhi MP convicted in defamation case Parliamentary sources say he is more likely to lose his post. This is because an elected representative of the people is immediately disqualified if he is sentenced to two years or more in any case. And cannot contest elections for another six years. The practice of 3 months from disqualification was abolished by the Supreme Court in 2013 in the Lilly Thomas case. With this, MPs and MLAs will be disqualified immediately after being convicted.
In Rahul’s case, the Surat court that has sentenced him has given him 30 days to file an appeal against its verdict. Rahul Gandhi’s disqualification will come into effect after a month if the High Court does not stay the order within a month. What will happen to Rahul Gandhi will depend on his next move.
At the same time, recently, the Lakshadweep court in January first sentenced the Lakshadweep MP Mohammed Faisal of Sarath Pawar’s NCP in the attempted murder case. There was a risk of losing the MP post due to this. But within a week, he approached the Kerala High Court and got a stay on the sentencing order. He also got an order invalidating his disqualification from the post of Lok Sabha member.
A Lok Sabha Speaker’s office source said, “Let an order come to the Speaker’s office with a complaint to disqualify him. If a complaint is received with an order, legal experts will be consulted and a decision will be taken,” it said.
What Congress Says?: As for Rahul Gandhi, the Congress has admitted that he may be disqualified if he does not appeal the verdict, and has said that Rahul will not come to Parliament until the case is appealed and heard.
The ruling BJP MPs have been fighting for the past 7 days in Parliament against Rahul Gandhi’s remarks at Cambridge University following the Hindenburg-Adani issue. Their only demand is to ban Rahul from attending the parliamentary session. In such a situation, how the verdict of the Surat court will affect Rahul’s future as a representative of the people will depend on his next steps.
