Big blow for Rahul Gandhi; Surat court dumps plea for stay on conviction in 'Modi surname' case

In a major setback, a Surat sessions court on Thursday rejected Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's request for a stay of execution in a criminal defamation case stemming from his "Modi surname" statement.

Earlier, a Gujarat court convicted Rahul Gandhi in the 2019 defamation case over his comment that "all thieves have Modi as a common surname." The remark was made in Karnataka's Kolar area before of the 2019 national election, and Gandhi was found guilty by a court in Surat, Gujarat, the home state of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

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Gandhi was sentenced to two years in prison by the court, but he was freed on bail so that he could appeal the judgement. He was convicted under Section 500 (defamation) of the Indian Penal Code, which states that anybody who defames another person can be sentenced to simple imprisonment for up to two years, a fine, or both.

On March 23, a Surat court in Gujarat found Rahul Gandhi guilty of defamation and sentenced him to two years in prison. Following his conviction, he was barred from serving in the Lok Sabha as of the date of the judgement. Gandhi was granted bail and given a month to file an appeal with a higher court.

On April 3, Rahul Gandhi filed an appeal at the sessions court against his conviction, claiming that the ruling was "erroneous and patently perverse" and that he was convicted in such a way that he would be disqualified as a member of Parliament. The Congress leader further claimed that the trial court was "overwhelmingly influenced" by his MP position, and that there is no such thing as a clear Modi samaj or community on record.

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