Sentenced to Two Years in Prison for Defamation, India's Opposition Leader Rahul Gandhi Is Disqualified from Parliament

JAKARTA - India's parliament disqualified opposition Congress party leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday, a day after a court judge found him guilty and sentenced him to two years in prison, in a defamation case linked to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's surname.

Gandhi was "disqualified from membership of the Lok Sabha", a parliamentary notification said, referring to the lower house of parliament.

Gandhi, 52, was found guilty over a speech in 2019 in which he said the thieves had the surname Modi. He made the comments while campaigning ahead of the last general election.

Gandhi was found guilty by a court in the Western state of Gujarat, which also granted him bail and suspended his sentence for one month.

A close aide to Gandhi said the leader had complied with a court order and did not enter parliament during Friday's session.

Separately, Congress Party leaders said they were preparing to appeal to a higher court.

"This fight will be fought both legally and politically," said Pawan Khera, the party's national spokesman.

"Rahul Gandhi will stop at nothing to ask the tough questions and expose crony capitalism and the government's active role in promoting and protecting it," he explained.

Meanwhile, members of the Congress Party held protests in several parts of the country, against Gandhi's conviction and two-year prison term.

Congress Party officials said the decision was politically motivated and blamed PM Modi's government and the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

"The BJP is worried about the rise of Rahul Gandhi and he is a direct threat to the Modi government," said Pradip Bhattacharya, a Congress Party lawmaker from West Bengal state.

Separately, BJP President J.P. Nadda dismissed the accusations, saying Gandhi had insulted a section of Indian society who happens to share the same surname as Prime Minister Modi.

"To question the government about its policies is one thing, and it would be considered a healthy debate, but it's clear that Congress has never followed those rules," he said.

It is known that the defamation case was filed by a Gujarat MP from Modi's BJP party.

Gandhi will appeal the ruling in a higher court. But any imprisonment for him or disqualification from parliament would be a blow to the Congress Party ahead of the 2024 general election, which PM Modi's party is widely expected to win.

Unlike in many other countries, where defamation is a civil offense, Indian law also has provisions classifying it as a criminal offense, punishable by up to two years in prison.