Rahul Gandhi gets bail, exempted from appearing in Court
A sessions court in Gujarat’s Surat city on Monday granted bail to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi after admitting his appeal against conviction in a 2019 criminal defamation case over his “Modi surname” remark in which he has been sentenced to two years in jail, a defence lawyer said.
Gandhi (52), who was disqualified from the Lok Sabha after he was handed two-year jail term last month, was present in the additional sessions judge RP Mogera’s court which granted him bail till the disposal of his appeal on a bond of Rs 15,000.
The court also issued a notice to complainant Purnesh Modi, a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA and former Gujarat cabinet minister, over the application for suspension of the conviction. It set April 13 for hearing the plea seeking the suspension of conviction and subsequent sentence.
“Gandhi’s appeal against conviction was admitted by the sessions court. He also moved an applications for bail and suspension of the conviction. The court granted him bail till the disposal of his appeal,” his lawyer Kirit Panwala said.