Rahul Gandhi defamation case: Court extends his bail till April 13

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi waves at supporters as he leaves the district court, Surat, on Monday. Pic/PTI

The District and Sessions Court in Surat city of Gujarat on Monday granted bail to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi after he filed an appeal against his conviction in a criminal defamation case, a lawyer said. A magistrate's court had last month sentenced Rahul to two years in jail over his 2019 "Modi surname" remark.

The court of Additional Sessions Judge R P Mogera said it will hear his plea for suspension of conviction on April 13 after issuing a notice to complainant Purnesh Modi, a BJP MLA and former Gujarat minister. The court asked Purnesh to file his reply by April 10.

"We had filed an application for Rahul Gandhi's bail and suspension of sentence along with his appeal against conviction by a lower court," a member of his legal team told reporters. Rahul, who arrived in Surat earlier in the day, won't be required to appear in the court during the hearing of the case, he said.

Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and other party leaders were present in the courtroom for the hearing around 3 pm. Minutes after the hearing, Gandhi said in a tweet in Hindi, "This is a fight against ‘Mitrkaal' to save democracy. In this struggle, truth is my weapon, and truth is my support!"

Also read: 87 supporters of Rahul Gandhi including 51 from Maha detained in Navsari on way to Surat

Gandhi has been taking the ‘Mitrakaal' jibe at the Centre, accusing it of working to benefit its "crony capitalist friends". Earlier in the day, Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju called the decision of Congress leaders to accompany Rahul to the Surat court a "drama" and alleged that the party was trying to exert "undue pressure" on the judiciary.

Rejecting the charge, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge said the presence of the party leaders in Surat is not a "show of strength", but a "symbol of support" for Gandhi.

Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh took to Twitter to hit back at Rijiju, saying, "The man who threatens the judiciary, judges and ex-judges daily and also distorts history daily talking. Hypocrisy ki koi seema nahin hai Modi Kaal mein (There is no limit to hypocrisy in Modi's rule)."

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