Rahul Gandhi defamation case: Complainant Purnesh Modi files caveat in SC

Complainant in Modi surname case moves a caveat in the apex court in anticipation of appeal by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi against the Gujarat High Court judgement disallowing his appeal to suspend his conviction.

New Delhi: Purnesh Modi, the complainant in the defamation case against Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in Gujarat, has filed a caveat in the Supreme Court anticipating an appeal by Gandhi challenging the Gujarat High Court judgment. On July 7, the high court declined Rahul Gandhi's plea seeking a stay on his conviction in a criminal defamation case over his Modi surname.

According to the apex court website, the caveat was filed on July 7. The Congress had said that they would move the Supreme Court challenging the Gujarat High Court judgment. The court is to hear both sides before passing any order in case a caveat is filed. High Court judge Justice Hemant Prachchhak who delivered the verdict disallowed the plea. The court upheld the sessions court's order denying stay on conviction of Rahul Gandhi in the defamation case against 'Modi surname' remark.

The judge had earlier refused to grant interim relief as sought by the disqualified Parliamentarian while hearing the plea. Rahul Gandhi's lawyer argued that his client, if subjected to the maximum punishment of two years for a bailable, non-cognisable offense, would lose his Lok Sabha seat "permanently and irreversibly." This consequence was deemed a serious additional burden for both Gandhi personally and the constituency he represents. The lawyer emphasized the irreversible nature of this outcome.

The criminal defamation case against Rahul Gandhi stemmed from his 2019 remark made during an election rally in Kolar, Karnataka. Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA Purnesh Modi, representing Surat West, filed the case in response to Gandhi's statement questioning how "all thieves have Modi as the common surname”.

On March 23, 2023, a metropolitan magistrate's court in Surat convicted Gandhi under Sections 499 and 500 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), which pertain to criminal defamation, and sentenced him to two years in prison.