He was reinstated as MP by the Lok Sabha secretariat after the Supreme Court stayed his conviction in a criminal defamation case.
Published Aug 08, 2023 | 5:43 PM ⚊ Updated Aug 08, 2023 | 5:52 PM
Rahul Gandhi speaking at an event in Wayanad. (X)
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi will visit Wayanad on 12 and 13 August, his first trip to his constituency after being reinstated as a member of Parliament, party general secretary KC Venugopal said on Tuesday, 8 August.
Rahul Gandhi was reinstated as MP by the Lok Sabha secretariat on Monday, days after the Supreme Court stayed his conviction in a criminal defamation case.
“On 12-13 August, Sh. @RahulGandhi ji will be in his constituency Wayanad! The people of Wayanad are elated that democracy has won, their voice has returned to Parliament! Rahul ji is not just an MP but a member of their family!” Congress general secretary KC Venugopal said in a tweet.
On 12-13 August, Sh. @RahulGandhi ji will be in his constituency Wayanad!
The people of Wayanad are elated that democracy has won, their voice has returned to Parliament!
Rahul ji is not just an MP but a member of their family!
— K C Venugopal (@kcvenugopalmp) August 8, 2023
The Congress leader was convicted on 23 March and was sentenced to two years in jail — the maximum sentence possible in a defamation case, and the minimum required for disqualification as an MP — by a court in Surat in Gujarat.
The Supreme Court, while staying the conviction of Rahul Gandhi on 4 August, was of the opinion that the lower court did not consider certain facts before awarding the sentence.
“Not only petitioner’s right to continue in public life affected but also that of electorate’s who have elected him,” said Justice BR Gavai while imposing a stay on the conviction.
The judge said the order of conviction needed to be stayed pending final adjudication.
Rahul Gandhi had, meanwhile, told the Supreme Court that the original surname of former Gujarat minister Purnesh Modi, who filed a defamation case against him, was not Modi and that he belonged to the Modh Vanika Samaj.
In a 2019 rally in Kolar in Karnataka, ahead of the general election, Rahul Gandhi had made adverse reference to the Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s surname, which Purnesh Modi contended was insulting to all Modis.
Senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, appearing for Rahul Gandhi, told a three-judge bench of Justices BR Gavai, PS Narasimha, and Sanjay Kumar that his client is not a hardened criminal and there is no conviction in any case despite several cases filed against him by BJP workers.
Earlier, Congress workers in the Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency welcomed the Supreme Court verdict on the defamation case.
Party workers distributed sweets in many parts of the hill constituency represented by Gandhi in Lok Sabha before his disqualification after his conviction in the case a few months ago.
“We’ve got our leader back (in the constituency),” a Congress worker told a TV channel, expressing his happiness over the verdict.
“Finally, Rahul Gandhi has got justice from the apex court. It’s a verdict against the BJP’s politics of vengeance,” Salih, a Congress worker, said.
Congress leader from Wayanad and MLA IC Balakrishnan, representing Sultan Batheri constituency in the state Assembly, said Gandhi had intervened in the issues of the people of Wayanad even after his disqualification as MP.
Leader of Opposition in the Assembly VD Satheesan said the party has already stated that the Sangh Parivar cannot intimidate or silence it.
He said Gandhi has the backing of crores of Congress workers, and the party will continue its fight against politics of hate and fascism.
(With PTI inputs)
