Rahul Gandhi disqualified from India parliament

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was disqualified today as a member of Lok Sabha, the lower house of India's bicameral Parliament, a day after his conviction and two-year prison sentence by a court in Surat in a four-year-old criminal defamation case.

"Shri Rahul Gandhi, Member of Lok Sabha representing the Wayanad Parliamentary Constituency of Kerala stands disqualified from the membership of Lok Sabha from the date of his conviction i.e. 23 March, 2023 in terms of the provisions of Article 102(1)(e) of the Constitution of India read with Section 8 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951," Lok Sabha Secretariat said in a notification issued today.

The notification was signed by Lok Sabha Secretary General Utpal Kumar Singh.

Rahul's disqualification as an elected lawmaker from Wayanad, Kerala state, starts from March 23, the day of his conviction, the Lok Sabha secretariat said in its notification.

On Thursday, a court in Surat sentenced Rahul Gandhi to two years in jail in a criminal defamation case filed on a complaint by BJP legislator of Gujarat Purnesh Modi for his alleged remark "How come all thieves have Modi as the common surname?

Congress reacted to Rahul's disqualification by saying "we will not be intimidated or silenced."

Congress General Secretary and Chief Spokesman Jairam Ramesh said the party will fight the battle legally and politically.

The announcement of Rahul's disqualification as a lawmaker came even as Congress leaders today hit the streets through a protest march from Parliament House, alleging that democracy is in "danger" and demanding a Joint Parliamentary Committee probe into the Adani issue.

Prominent Congress leaders, including K C Venugopal, Adhir Chowdhury, K Suresh, Manickam Tagore and Mohammed Javed, were stopped by the police and detained at Vijay Chowk near parliament complex for violating prohibitory orders, the opposition claimed.

Addressing the media at Vijay Chowk, several leaders, including Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, also raised the issue of Rahul Gandhi's conviction in a 2019 criminal defamation case by a Surat court and alleged that the government was targeting the opposition with cases to suppress their voices.