An Indian court on Thursday sentenced Indian opposition leader Rahul Gandhi, of the historic Congress Party (INC) of the Nehru-Gandhi dynasty, to two years in prison for defamation, for a comment asking why “all the thieves” they share the surname of the prime minister, Narendra Modi.
“The prosecution asked for the maximum sentence and fine for him, and for the plaintiff to be compensated,” one of the prosecution’s lawyers told the media as he left the Surat district court, in the western state of Gujarat, after that the sentence be announced.
Gandhi was sentenced to two years in prison, in a case brought in 2019 by an MP from Modi’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), but will remain free on bail to appeal the sentence, the Indian Express reported.
Among the first to react to the news was Justice Minister Kiren Rijiju, who stated that the opposition leader’s comments “not only harm his party but are also not good for the nation.” “Some parliamentarians and leaders of the Congress (Party) have told me today that the party is collapsing because of Rahul Gandhi’s attitude,” he said.
The opposition leader wondered, during a political rally ahead of the 2019 general election, why “all thieves” have “Modi” in their names. The diamond magnate Nirav Modi, accused of having perpetrated the fraud of 1,770 million dollars (1,506 million euros) to the Punjab National Bank (PNB), and the former head of the Indian Premier League (IPL) of cricket Lalit Modi were two of those alluded to by Gandhi. The surname is common in western India, especially in the Gujarat region where the prime minister hails from.
Gandhi, who according to footage broadcast on Delhi NDTV television left the court surrounded by a heavy escort, or tweeted a quote from Indian independence leader Mahatma Gandhi: “My religion is based on truth and non-violence. Truth is my God, and non-violence the means to achieve it”. The Congress party said it will challenge the verdict in a higher court.
The conflict between India’s opposition and the ruling coalition has heated up in recent weeks ahead of national elections, which are a year away. Members of the BJP have protested in the Indian Parliament, where they have blocked the functioning of both houses to demand an apology for Gandhi’s allegedly derogatory comments about India while he was in the UK. Gandhi said that “democracy” was “under attack” in India. The Congress party has vociferously defended Gandhi.
The dauphin of the Nerhu-Gandhi dynasty resigned from the presidency of the Congress Party in 2019, after losing resoundingly in the last general election to Modi.
