The Supreme Court on Friday has agreed to hear Rahul Gandhi’s plea against the Gujarat High Court, but said that any order cannot be passed without hearing Prunesh Modi’s viewpoint. The top court issued notice and sought response of former Gujarat Minister Purnesh Modi and the Gujarat government.
A bench of Justice BR Gavai and Justice PK Mishra issued notice to Purnesh Modi, who in 2019 had filed a criminal defamation complaint against Rahul Gandhi for his remark “How is Modi the common surname of all thieves?” This remark was made during an election rally in Kolar, Karnataka on April 13, 2019.
While senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi appeard for Rahul Gandhi and sought relief from the bench, the bench said, ‘The limited question at this stage is whether the conviction should be stayed.”
Advocate Singhvi said the Congress leader has suffered for 111 days, has lost one Parliament session an is about to lose another. The bench said no order can be passed without hearing the other side. The apex court has fixed the matter for further hearing on August 4.
In his appeal filed on July 15, Rahul Gandhi said that if the July 7 judgment is not stayed, it will lead to the stifling of freedom of speech, thought and expression.
The Congress leader was disqualified as a Member of Parliament on March 24 after a Gujarat court convicted him of criminal defamation for his comments about the Modi surname and sentenced him to two-year imprisonment.
A stay on Gandhi’s conviction could have paved the way for his reinstatement as a Lok Sabha MP, but he failed to get any relief from the Sessions Court or the Gujarat High Court.
