New Delhi [India], March 24 (ANI): In a major development Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has been disqualified as a Member of Lok Sabha (MP) from the date of his conviction in the criminal defamation case over his ‘Modi surname’ remark, March 23. Rahul Gandhi was an MP from the seat of Wayanad in Kerala.

This comes after the Surat court on Thursday, sentenced Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to two years imprisonment in a defamation case over his ‘Modi surname’ remark made in 2019 during an election rally in Karnataka. Rahul Gandhi made the “how come all the thieves have Modi as the common surname” remark in April 2019, at a Lok Sabha election rally at Kolar in Karnataka. The criminal defamation case against Rahul Gandhi was filed by BJP MLA from Surat West Purnesh Modi.

Priyanka Gandhi attacks PM Modi after Rahul Gandhi’s disqualification from LS, says government “rattled” by questions on Adani issue

New Delhi [India], March 24 (ANI): Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Friday mounted a strong attack on BJP-led government after disqualification of Rahul Gandhi from Lok Sabha and alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was rattled by questions on Adani issue while the Congress leader was a true patriot who had raised questions on issues of public interest. Priyanka Gandhi, who made a series of tweets, said that the Nehru-Gandhi family has given its blood to the country and fought for truth.

She said sycophants of PM Modi had “called the son of a martyr prime minister traitor Mir Jafar”.
“One of your Chief Ministers raised the question that who is the father of Rahul Gandhi? Following the custom of Kashmiri Pandits, a son wears a turban after his father’s death, maintaining his family’s tradition. Insulting the whole family and the Kashmiri Pandit community, you asked in Parliament why they don’t keep Nehru name…but no judge gave you a sentence of two years.You were not disqualified from Parliament…. Rahul ji like a true patriot raised questions on Adani.

“Raised questions on Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi…. Has your friend Gautam Adani become bigger than the country’s parliament and the people of India that you were rattled when his loot was questioned? You call my family dynastic, know, this family has shed blood for India’s democracy…who you are trying to destroy (politically),” the Congress leader said

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said that Nehru-Gandhi family has raised voice of people and fought for truth.
“Those whom you are seeking to destroy (politically), that family has raised voice of people of India and fought for truth for generations. The blood that flows in our veins, a speciality of it is,, it has and will never bow to coward, power-greedy dictator like you. Whatever you may do,” she said.
Several Congress leaders strongly condemned the government over Rahul Gandhi’s disqualification from Lok Sabha.

Addressing a press conference at the party headquarters in the national capital, Congress leaders Abhishek Manu Singhvi and Jairam Ramesh said the BJP-led government was rattled by Gandhi’s remarks.

“The issue before us is political, more than it is legal. It is a political issue because it signifies the systematic, repetitive emasculation of democratic institutions by the ruling party. It signifies the strangulation of democracy itself. We know that defamation is an exception to free speech, but over the last several years, we have had repeated examples of unthinkable assaults on freedom of speech, more importantly, freedom after speech. We all know that Rahul Gandhi has been speaking fearlessly inside and outside Parliament. He is paying a price for it,” Singhvi said.

“This government is rattled because he clearly speaks with facts and figures on demonetisation. Be it the supposed clean chit to China, or the GST, he is consistently aggressive and open in his questioning. Therefore this government is finding new techniques to throttle his voice,” Singhvi alleged. (ANI)

“Fighting for voice of India, ready to pay any price”: Rahul Gandhi after disqualification as MP

New Delhi [India], March 24 (ANI): Reacting to his disqualification as a member of the Lok Sabha, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday said he was fighting to restore the country’s voice and will pay any price to do so. “I am fighting for the voice of India and am ready to pay any price (for it),” Gandhi tweeted in Hindi.

His tweet followed his disqualification as a Lok Sabha MP earlier on Friday. The disqualification came in the wake of Rahul’s conviction by a Surat court in a 2019 defamation case on Thursday. The disqualified Congress MP was sentenced to two years in prison following his conviction for a remark using the surname ‘Modi’ at a campaign event for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, in Karnataka.

However, the court later approved his bail on a surety of Rs 15,000 while suspending his sentence for a period of 30 days during which he can challenge his conviction at a higher court. Meanwhile, the Congress on Friday came down heavily on the Centre over Rahul’s disqualification as a Lok Sabha member, calling it a “strangulation of democracy” while exuding confidence that the disqualification will be revoked through a stay on his conviction by a higher court.

The party alleged that Rahul’s disqualification is part of a “pattern” to stop him from speaking out against the Central government and also an attempt to divert public attention from real issues. Addressing a press conference at the party headquarters in the national capital, Congress national spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi and senior leader Jairam Ramesh lashed out at the Centre over the disqualification of the former national party president.

“The issue before us is political, more than it is legal. It is a political issue because it signifies the systematic, repetitive emasculation of democratic institutions by the ruling party. It signifies the strangulation of democracy itself. We know that defamation is an exception to free speech, but over the last several years, we have had repeated examples of unthinkable assaults on freedom of speech, more importantly, freedom after speech. We all know that Rahul Gandhi has been speaking fearlessly inside and outside Parliament. He is paying a price for it,” Singhvi said.

He said that the government was resorting to new methods to “throttle” Rahul Gandhi’s voice. “This government is rattled because he clearly speaks with facts and figures on demonetisation. Be it the supposed clean chit to China, or the GST, he is consistently aggressive and open in his questioning. Therefore this government is finding new techniques of throttling his voice,” Singhvi alleged.

On the severe criticism by the BJP following Rahul Gandhi’s remarks on Indian democracy in the UK recently, Singhvi said the Congress leader is not entitled to speak freely on grounds of “fake and imaginary nationalism”. “Rahul Gandhi goes abroad, he is not entitled to speak freely on grounds of fake nationalism, created imaginary nationalism. He comes back and his speeches abroad become the basis of action against him inside Parliament. All of this is part of a pattern to stop him (from speaking out against this government), to divert public attention from the real and burning issues before the nation today. It is also intended to create a fear psychosis among those who dare to question this government,” he said.
Singhvi said Rahul will emerge victorious in the higher court in the defamation case.

“We are confident that we will get a stay on his conviction, which will, in turn, remove the very basis of this disqualification. We have full faith in the law. We believe we will emerge victorious in the near future,” he said. (ANI)