Rahul Gandhi likely to appear before Surat court against his conviction: Source

Rahul Gandhi was disqualified as Lok Sabha MP after his conviction. (PTI/File)

By Mausami Singh: Rahul Gandhi is likely to appear in person before the Surat court on Monday, to appeal against his conviction. As per Congress sources, the former Congress MP from Kerala's Wayanad will plead for innocence in court in person.

Rahul Gandhi was sentenced to a two-year jail term in a criminal defamation case and subsequently lost his Lok Sabha membership.

As per the allegations, Rahul Gandhi, during Congress's election campaign in Kolar in 2019, made derogatory remarks against Prime Minister Narendra Modi's surname, which resulted in his conviction by a Gujarat local court on March 23.

The court convicted the Congress leader for his "all thieves have Modi surname" remark under 504 (Intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

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The case was filed against the Congress MP in 2019 by a Gujarat BJP MLA over his "why all the thieves have Modi in their name" remark.

In the complaint, the MLA, Purnesh Modi, alleged Rahul Gandhi defamed the entire Modi community with his statement.

The complaint was filed under IPC sections 499 and 500, both providing for defamation.

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The disqualification of Rahul Gandhi as a legislator will bar the 52-year-old, a four-time MP, from contesting polls for eight years unless a higher court stays his conviction.