Explanation that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is unfit for the post of MP

New Delhi: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who was convicted in a defamation case, is unfit for the post of MP. The new explanation is that Rahul Gandhi can continue as an MP only if the conviction is stayed.

The Surat Chief Magistrate's Court sentenced Rahul Gandhi to two years in prison for making a reference to the name Modi during the 2019 Lok Sabha election campaign. The court had held Rahul guilty under sections 499 and 500 of the IPC. The bail court then stayed the execution of the sentence for 30 days to file an appeal. Rahul was in the court when the verdict was pronounced. Referring to controversial diamond merchant Nirav Modi and former IPL chairman Lalit Modi, Rahul's remark was why all thieves have the name Modi. BJP leader Purnesh Modi approached the court against this.

As of now, Gandhi has retained his Lok Sabha membership as the Surat court that convicted him has suspended his sentence for 30 days. It saves him from immediate disqualification - Lily Thomas vs Union of India case is a case in point. In that case, the Supreme Court had ruled that members of the legislature, including MPs, would immediately lose their membership if convicted for at least two years.

In 2013, the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government sought to overturn the verdict and retain Section 8 (4) of the Representation of the People Act, which cannot disqualify lawmakers for three months even if convicted.

But Gandhi called the ordinance absolutely absurd and suggested that it be torn to pieces before he could commit it to a printout to prove his point.

Currently, the court has frozen the execution of Rahul Gandhi's sentence. Suspension of sentence does not remove disqualification. Legal sources indicate that disqualification can be avoided only if the order of conviction and punishment is stayed.

Supreme Court lawyer Upamanyu Hazarika argued that Gandhiji's two-year jail term and Rs 15,000 fine suspended for 30 days were key elements in the Surat court's verdict.

"A suspended sentence means that Gandhi has been found guilty, but his sentence is not immediately applicable," Hazarika said. These 30 days were crucial for Gandhiji. If he gets a higher court to stay or overturn the Surat district court's order, he can continue as MP.

The first information was that Rahul Gandhi, the MP from Wayanad, would be disqualified from the Lok Sabha if the Supreme Court upheld the two-year sentence. The new explanation is that Rahul Gandhi is disqualified with the verdict of the magistrate court. Let's wait and see as this case will lead to more arguments