‘My duty remains same, protect the idea of India’; Rahul Gandhi after SC stays his conviction in defamation case

NEW DELHI: Hours after the Supreme Court stayed his conviction in the criminal defamation case over ‘Modi surname’ remark, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday said that he will continue to work to protect the idea of India.

“Come what may, my duty remains the same. Protect the idea of India,” Gandhi said in a tweet.

Supreme Court, in an interim order, on Friday stayed the conviction of Rahul Gandhi in the criminal defamation case over the ‘Modi surname’ remark.

Earlier in the day, the Congress leader Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said he will write to the Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla to revoke the disqualification of Rahul Gandhi from the House following the apex court order.

“It’s a happy day...I will write and speak to Lok Sabha Speaker today itself,” Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said. “This is the victory of truth. This will prove costly for Prime Minister,” he said.

Chowdhury sought to raise the demand for revocation of Rahul Gandhi’s disqualification in Lok Sabha on Friday.

He said he will also make the demand on Monday.

Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said Rahul Gandhi has “refused to bend” despite the relentless efforts of BJP.

“The Supreme Court judgment is a strong vindication of truth and justice. Despite the relentless efforts of the BJPs machinery, @RahulGandhi has refused to bend, break or bow, choosing instead to place his faith in the judicial process,” Jairam Ramesh said in a tweet.

After his conviction in the case, Gandhi was declared disqualified as MP from Kerala’s Wayanad on March 24 following notification of the Lok Sabha Secretariat. The apex court, while granting relief to Gandhi, said the ramifications of the trial court’s order are wide.

Not only was Gandhi’s right to continue in public life affected but also that of the electorate who elected him, the bench said.

Congress leader was sentenced to two years in jail on March 23 under sections 499 and 500 (defamation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) in a case filed by Purnesh Modi.

At a rally in Karnataka’s Kolar in April 2019, Rahul Gandhi, in a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, said, “How come all the thieves have Modi as the common surname?”(ANI)

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