'Higher Courts Will Set Right The Errors In Verdicts': Congress On Court Rejecting Rahul Gandhi's Plea

The Congress said it will continue to avail all options still available under the law after a Gujarat court rejected Rahul Gandhi's application for a stay on his conviction in "Modi Surname" case.

The Congress on Thursday said it will continue to avail all options still available under the law after a Gujarat court rejected Rahul Gandhi's application for a stay on his conviction in the 2019 criminal defamation case. Congress leader Dr. Abhishek Manu Singhvi said that the verdict is "unfortunate". "A wrong verdict has been affirmed, we will use our alternatives," he said addressing a presser, adding that the party will approach a higher court at the earliest.

The lawyer-politician called the Surat verdict verdict "suspicious". "We are confident that superior courts namely the high court and Supreme Court will set right the legal errors found with these two judgments. We are clear that the judgment is devoid of valid legal sustainable reasoning," Singhvi remarked.

"The whole of India sees BJP as misusing the OBC community for its narrow and cheap political gains. Rahul Gandhi's voice cannot be silenced the way the BJP thinks... They have unleashed lakhs of troller against Rahul Gandhi."

"Rahul Gandhi has not spoken anything remotely defamatory in this case, he will continue to speak for the people," Singhvi remarked.

The Congress leader claimed that the Surat court verdict cites "selective statements", some of which, he said, are in favour of Rahul Gandhi's case.

"We will continue to avail all options still available to us under the law. Dr A M Singhvi will brief the media on Rahul Gandhi's appeal at 4 pm," Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh said in a tweet earlier today.

Surat Court Refuses To Stay Rahul Gandhi's Conviction

A court in Gujarat's Surat city rejected Rahul Gandhi's application for a stay on his conviction in the case over his "Modi surname" remark.

The court of additional sessions judge R P Mogera rejected the Congress leader's application for relief pending his appeal against a lower court's order sentencing him to two years in jail in the case.

The former Wayanad MP had on April 3 approached the sessions court for an appeal against the lower court's order.

A stay on conviction by the sessions court could have paved the way for his reinstatement as a Member of Parliament.

Rahul Gandhi had approached the sessions court for appeal after the lower court sentenced him to two years in jail while convicting him for criminal defamation over his remark, "How come all thieves have Modi as the common surname?" made during an election rally at Kolar in Karnataka on April 13, 2019.

According to PTI, his lawyers had filed two applications, one for a stay on the sentence (or bail till the disposal of his appeal) and another for a stay on conviction till the disposal of his appeal.

The sessions court will continue its hearing on former Wayanad MP Rahul Gandhi's main plea against the lower court's order.