Rahul Gandhi defamation case: Gujarat BJP MLA files caveat in SC
Gujarat BJP MLA Purnesh Modi, whose defamation complaint led to the conviction of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, has filed a caveat in the Supreme Court for a prior intimation of hearing in case the disqualified Wayanad MP challenged the High Court's order declining his plea for stay on conviction.
Gandhi is supposed to file a special leave petition against the Gujarat High Court's order of July 7.
The High Court had then dismissed Gandhi's plea to suspend his conviction in the defamation case for his 2019 remark at a Kolar rally where he asked that why all thieves had Modi surname.
A bench of Justice Hemant Prachchhak said that in view of Gandhi's conduct and other pending cases against him, the conviction in the present case would not do any injustice to him.
The court also pointed out it is well settled law that stay on conviction is not a rule but rather an exception.
"Moreover, as many as 10 criminal cases are pending against the applicant. It is now the need of the hour to have purity in politics... After the complaint in the present case, another complaint was filed at Pune by the grandson of Veer Savarkar against the applicant," the bench had said.
The Congress had then said the High Court's judgement was not unexpected.
In April, a sessions court in Surat had also dismissed Gandhi's plea to stay his conviction in the defamation case, affecting his chances to get back his status as Member of Parliament.
It had then said as the MP and President of the second largest political party, he should have been more careful with his words, which would have large impact on the mind of people.
On March 23, 2023, the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Surat had held Gandhi guilty for the offence of defamation and awarded him maximum two-year jail term on the complaint by Purnesh Modi.
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