Congress leader and former MP Rahul Gandhi appealed to the Supreme Court via electronic filing, disputing a Gujarat High Court decision refusing to postpone a Surat trial court's judgment sentencing him to two years in prison in the Modi surname defamation case.
The petition, yet to be numbered by the SC Registry, is likely to be mentioned for urgent hearing before a bench led by CJI D Y Chandrachud in the next few days. Rahul needs the SC to act quickly because, in the absence of a stay of proceedings, he will have to apply for new bail while his appeal against the conviction is pending and risk losing his right to run to become a member of parliament for eight years as of the date of the Surat court's order.
In his petition, Rahul said, “If the relief is not granted to the petitioner, then he will lose eight years of his career.” Under Section 8(3) of the Representation of the People Act, a person convicted and sentenced to two years for any offence would remain disqualified to contest elections for the jail term and six years after serving the sentence.
He claimed that the offense that had been brought against him at the request of one Purnesh Modi, whose attorney P S Sudheer had submitted a caveat to the SC to prevent Rahul from obtaining an ex-parte stay on the HC ruling, was neither serious in nature nor fit the definition of "moral turpitude" to justify such a harsh punishment.
Questioning the locus standi of the complainant to file a defamation case against him, Rahul said when the allegedly offending or defamatory words were spoken during a political speech, it must be understood to have been directed at a political opponent and not against any class or community.