Rahul Gandhi

'If the accused is mildly punished, then it sends a wrong message to the public, and the purpose of defamation will not be served,'the judge said in the order.

In a major setback, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday was disqualified as a Member of Lok Sabha from the date of his conviction (March 23) in the criminal defamation case over his 'Modi surname' remark. He was found guilty of violating Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 499 and 500 by the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate HH Varma.

Nadda also said Gandhi repeatedly ignored suggestions from the court and the community to tender an apology for his comments. "The entire Other Backward Classes will avenge this insult in a democratic manner," the BJP president said.

According to the rule book, the Speaker is well within rights to disqualify the Wayanad MP following his conviction in the case.

The court of Chief Judicial Magistrate HH Varma sentenced Gandhi to two years in jail in a criminal defamation case over his 'Modi surname" remark during an election rally in Karnataka in ahead of 2019 Lok Sabha election.

According to reports, the case was filed against Rahul Gandhi for his alleged "how come all the thieves have Modi as the common surname?" remarks on a complaint lodged by BJP MLA and former Gujarat minister Purnesh Modi.

RahulGandhi termed the police action "unprecedented" and asked whether this had anything to do with his position taken both inside and outside Parliament on the Adani issue, sources said.

The team sought details from Rahul Gandhi based on a statement he had given in Srinagar on January 30 that during his Bharat Jodo Yatra he had met several women and they told him that they had been raped.

"Earlier the mike used to be off, today the proceedings of the House have been muted. The house is mute for PM Modi's friend," the Congress party claimed on Twitter

Swara Bhasker-Fahad Ahmad's wedding reception in Delhi: After their January court wedding, the couple threw a big wedding celebration in Delhi, which was attended by both Bollywood celebrities and politicians.