Today, the Supreme Court rejected a petition filed by a lawyer from Lucknow, challenging the restoration of Rahul Gandhi's Lok Sabha membership. The Lok Sabha Secretariat had reinstated his membership on August 7, shortly after the court had temporarily suspended his conviction in a criminal defamation case related to his comments on Modi.

During the course of hearing today, Advocate Ashok Pandey, the petitioner, argued that when a Member of Parliament (MP) is disqualified due to a criminal conviction, they should remain ineligible for their office until their acquittal by a higher court.

The bench comprising Justices BR Gavai, Aravind Kumar, and Prashant Kumar Mishra rejected the PIL and imposed the fine of Rs. 1 Lakhs on the lawyer for filing the PIL.

Case Brief -

During the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Rahul Gandhi stated at a rally in Kolar, Karnataka, that Modi's surname is "thief." Purnesh Modi, a Gujarat government minister and BJP leader, launched a defamation suit in response to this statement. Rahul Gandhi was found guilty and sentenced to two years in prison by the Surat lower court in March 2023.

The unique aspect of this case is that Rahul Gandhi received the maximum sentence. In other words, even if the lower court reduced the term by one day, Rahul Gandhi's membership in Parliament would not have been jeopardized.

Case Title - Ashok Pandey v. The Speaker of Lok Sabha And Ors.