BJP MLA Purnesh Modi Files Caveat In SC In Defamation Case Against Rahul Gandhi

BJP MLA Purnesh Modi, who had filed the defamation case against Rahul Gandhi, has taken a precautionary measure by filing a caveat in the Supreme Court.

This caveat requests that he be given a chance to present his case if Gandhi decides to challenge the high court's decision to not suspend his conviction in the Modi surname remark case.

On July 7, a single judge bench of the Gujarat High Court had dismissed Gandhi's plea to halt his conviction in the defamation case.

Purnesh Modi, represented by his lawyer P S Sudheer, filed the caveat in the Supreme Court on the same day, as per the information available on the apex court's website.

A caveat serves as a request from a litigant to be heard if any order is made on an opponent's appeal against the decision of the lower court. It is typically filed in an appellate court.

In a blow to 53-year-old Gandhi, Justice Hemant Prachchhak of the Gujarat HC had dismissed his appeal, emphasizing the importance of purity in politics.

The court had also highlighted the significance of representatives with clear backgrounds and stated that staying a conviction is the exception rather than the rule, only applied in rare cases where there are reasonable grounds.

The denial of a stay on Gandhi's conviction means that he cannot be reinstated as a Lok Sabha MP at this time.

In response to the verdict, the Congress announced its intention to take the case to the Supreme Court. They accused the government of using various tactics to silence Gandhi, claiming that they are threatened by his commitment to speaking the truth.

Purnesh Modi, a former minister in the Gujarat government, had filed the criminal defamation case against Gandhi in 2019. This was in response to Gandhi's remark during an election rally in Kolar, Karnataka on April 13, 2019, where he questioned the prevalence of the surname "Modi" among thieves.

On March 23 of this year, a metropolitan magistrate's court in Surat sentenced the former Congress president to two years in jail. Gandhi was convicted under sections 499 and 500 of the Indian Penal Code, which deal with criminal defamation.

As a result of the court's verdict, Gandhi, who was elected to the Lok Sabha from Wayanad, Kerala in 2019, was disqualified as a Member of Parliament. This disqualification was carried out in accordance with the provisions of the Representation of the People Act.

In response to the court's decision, Gandhi challenged the order in a sessions court in Surat. He also applied for a stay on the conviction, but the sessions court, while granting him bail, refused to stay the conviction on April 20.

As a result, Gandhi had taken the matter to the HC, which again refused a stay on the conviction.