Scion of India’s grand old party reinstated in Parliament
New Delhi, Aug 7 (EFE).- Indian opposition leader Rahul Gandhi of the grand old Congress Party (INC), was reinstated in the lower house of Parliament on Monday.
The move came after the Supreme Court put a stay on a two-year sentence against him for defamation.
“In view of order dated 04.08.2023 of the Supreme Court of India, the disqualification of Shri Rahul Gandhi (…) has ceased to operate subject to further judicial pronouncements,” read a circular by the secretariat of the Lok Sabha, or the lower house of the parliament.
A court in the western state of Gujarat in March sentenced Gandhi to two years in prison for defamation, after the politician claimed during a 2019 rally that “all thieves” share the surname of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Gandhi was released on bail until his appeal was decided upon, which is now before India’s top court.
The Supreme Court on Friday decided to put a stay on the conviction while examining Gandhi’s appeal against his conviction.
This will allow Gandhi – whose father, grandmother and great grandfather have served as prime minister of India – to return to parliament before debates on the no-confidence motion against Modi.
The son, grandson and great-grandson of prime ministers returns to Parliament before the debate on Tuesday begins on two motions of censorship against the Modi government.
The no-confidence motion by the opposition coalition comes after weeks of protests calling for discussions on the wave of ethnic violence in Manipur did not yield results.
Although the opposition does not have sufficient numbers to get the no-confidence motion passed, the move is likely to get Modi to address the Manipur issue before the Lok Sabha.
Gandhi stepped down as president of the INC in 2019 after the party’s resounding defeat to the Modi-led Bharatiya Janata Party in the previous general election. EFE
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