In a big relief, the Supreme Court put a stay on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's conviction in a criminal defamation case surrounding his "Modi surname" remarks. The Congress termed the top court's order as a strong vindication of truth and asserted that "no force can silence the voice of the people".
At a press conference, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge said, "We will have to see in how much time Rahul Gandhi will be reinstated. If it will be with the same speed with which he was disqualified, if today, tonight. We will wait. We have waited so long."
Congress on Rahul Gandhi's defamation case
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Congress general secretary in-charge communications Jairam Ramesh said on Twitter, "Despite the relentless efforts of the BJPs machinery, Rahul Gandhi has refused to bend, break or bow, choosing instead to place his faith in the judicial process."
"Let this be a lesson to the BJP and its acolytes: you can do your absolute worst but we will not back down. We will continue to expose and call out your failures as a Government and as a party. We will continue to uphold our Constitutional ideals and repose faith in our institutions which you so desperately want to destroy. Satyameva Jayate!" Ramesh further said.
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Congress' general secretary organisation K C Venugopal also hailed the verdict. "We welcome the Hon’ble Supreme Court’s verdict staying Sh. @RahulGandhi ji’s conviction. Justice has prevailed. No force can silence the voice of the people," Venugopal said on Twitter. Congress MP Randeep Surjewala said that the judgment has re-established the faith of common people in the Supreme Court.
Rahul Gandhi's conviction in this case had led to his disqualification as a member of parliament. Congress MP Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury said that he would write and speak to Lok Sabha Speaker today itself regarding his MP status.
Kerala Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala said that the people of Wayanad have got their MP back. "The people of Kerala, especially the people of Wayanad will be happy as they have got their MP back. BJP should give an apology on this issue. The highest court of India realised that this is an attempt to silence Rahul Gandhi...," he said.
A three-judge bench of Justices B R Gavai, P S Narasimha and Sanjay Kumar noted that while there is no doubt that the utterances were not in good taste and that a person in public life is expected to exercise caution while making public speeches, no reason has been given by the trial judge for imposing maximum sentence.
