Rahul Gandhi’s Lok Sabha membership restored

Rahul Gandhi’s membership in the Lok Sabha was reinstated on Monday by the Secretariat after the Supreme Court on August 4 stayed his conviction in the “Modi” surname remark case. The Congress leader who was removed from the lower house in March 2023 was re-elected as the Wayanad Member of Parliament.

“In continuation of Notification No. 21/4(3)/2023/TO(B), dated the 24th March, 2023, the Supreme Court of India has passed an order on 04.08.2023 in Special Leave to Appeal (Crl.) No. 8644/2023, staying the conviction of Rahul Gandhi, Member of Lok Sabha representing the Wayanad Parliamentary Constituency of Kerala, which was ordered by the judgment dated
23.03.2023 of the Court of the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Surat in C.C./ 18712/2019,” an official notification issued by Lok Sabha secretariat read.
“In view of order dated 04.08.2023 of the Supreme Court of India, the disqualification of Rahul Gandhi, notified vide Gazette Notification no. 21/4(3)/2023/TO(B) dated the 24th March, 2023 in terms of the provisions of Article 102(1)(e) of the Constitution of India read with Section 8 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, has ceased to operate subject to further
judicial pronouncements,” it added.

In an interim ruling on Friday, the Supreme Court stayed Gandhi’s conviction in the criminal defamation case involving the remark about the “Modi surname.” On an appeal from the Congress leader disputing the Gujarat High Court order, the top court sent notices to the Gujarat government and the complainant in July. Rahul was sentenced to two years in prison by the Surat court for making the remark about the “Modi surname” in the criminal defamation case in which the Gujarat High Court had earlier declined to stay his conviction.

After his conviction in the case, Gandhi was disqualified as MP from Kerala’s Wayanad on March 24.