File photo of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.
| Photo Credit: Reuters
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s legal team will be moving an appeal in Surat’s Session Court on April 3, 2023 to stay his conviction in a defamation case.
Mr Gandhi is likely to present in court along with senior leaders like K C Venugopal but the plan is still being finalized, a source told The Hindu on April 2, 2023.
Though the party is yet to officially announce it, party sources said Rajya Sabha member and Senior Advocate of the Supreme Court Abhishek Singhvi has supervised and advised the process of filing the appeal.
However, the appeal will be moved by noted criminal lawyer and Senior Advocate R S Cheema in Surta.
The appeal is against the March 23 order by Chief Judicial Magistrate H H Verma that held the Congress leader guilty in defamation case over his 2019 remark about the Modi surname.
“I have a question. Why do all of them — all of these thieves — have Modi Modi Modi in their names? Nirav Modi, Lalit Modi, Narendra Modi. And if we search a bit more, many more Modis will come out,” Mr Gandhi had said at an election rally ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.
BJP MLA Purnesh Modi filed a defamation case that led to Mr Gandhi’s conviction with a two year prison term and his subsequent disqualification from the Lok Sabha.
In his March 23 order, the Chief Judicial Magistrate H H Verma had given 30 days’ time to file an appeal and has suspended Mr Gandhi’s sentence. The court had also approved his bail on a surety of ₹15,000.