New Delhi: The Congress on Saturday staged a protest in Maharashtra's Thane against Rahul Gandhi's conviction in a four-year old defamation case and his disqualification as an MP, news agency PTI reported. The BJP and Chief Minister Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena held separate demonstrations over Gandhi’s remark that allegedly hurt the sentiments of the Other Backward Class (OBC).
The Congress staged the protest near the statue of Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar in Thane against Gandhi's Lok Sabha disqualification.
The protest was led Congress city unit president Vikrant Chavan. The protesters carried placards and banners and shouted slogans against the saffron party and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
On the other hand, the BJP leaders took out a protest at the same venue against the Congress leader. The agitation, led by former party corporator Milind Patankar, demanded that Rahul Gandhi must undergo his jail term for his remarks on ‘Modi surname’.
The Shiv Sena, led by former mayor and spokesman Naresh Mhaske, too held a protest march, where they raised slogans against Gandhi.
Earlier in the day, MLAs belonging to the Maharashtra Maha Vikash Aghadi (MVA) alliance staged a silent protest outside the state assembly over the conviction of Gandhi.
The MLAs who took part in the protest covered their faces and mouths with black bands. Shiv Sena (Uddhav Thackeray) faction leader Aditya Thackeray and Jayant Patil from the Congress also took part in the protest.
NCP leader Sharad Pawar said the opposition parties must stand united in defence of India's democratic institution.
He said, "The disqualification of Mr Rahul Gandhi and Mr Faizal a few months ago as MPs of the Lok Sabha are against the basic tenets of the constitution, where democratic values are being curtailed."
Notably, Rahul Gandhi was disqualified from the Lok Sabha on Friday, a day after a court in Gujarat's Surat convicted him in a 2019 defamation case.
The disqualification from the Lok Sabha will bar Gandhi, a four-time MP, from contesting polls for eight years unless a higher court stays his conviction or the quantum of the sentence is reduced.