Rahul Gandhi gets 2-year jail sentence in criminal defamation case, granted bail

Surat District Court on Thursday held Congress leader Rahul Gandhi guilty in a 2019 criminal defamation case filed against him for his “How come all the thieves have Modi as the common surname?” remarks.

A complaint was later lodged at his alleged “Modi surname” remarks by BJP MLA and former Gujarat minister Purnesh Modi. 

The Court also sentenced Congress MP Rahul Gandhi to 2 years of imprisonment in connection with the criminal defamation case filed against him. He was later granted bail by the court.

Reportedly, Gandhi has been convicted under sections 499 and 500 of the IPC. "The sentence awarded is for 2 years and against that sentence, he has pleaded that he may be released on bail till appeal period, and as per law, the Court has granted him bail for 30 days and until appeal, the sentence is suspended by the Court," said Ketan Reshamwala, Advocate for Purnesh Modi.

The lawyer representing the Congress MP also said that the 2-year punishment was reduced to 30 days and bail has been granted while allowing the right to appeal.

Rahul Gandhi had made the comment during a Lok Sabha election rally in Kolar of Karnataka on April 13, 2019. “Why all the thieves, be it Nirav Modi, Lalit Modi or Narendra Modi, have Modi in their names,” the Congress MP had allegedly said during the rally.

Following the court's order, Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju said, "I'll see the details of the order before I say anything. Whatever Rahul Gandhi speaks it always affects Congress party and the entire nation in a negative way. Some Congress MPs told me that because of his attitude, Congress is suffering."