On April 3, 2023, a Surat court in India granted bail to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in a defamation case and suspended his sentence until the appeal is disposed of. Gandhi had been convicted of criminal defamation and sentenced to two years of simple imprisonment by a Surat magistrate court on March 23, 2023, in a complaint filed by Surat West MLA Purnesh Modi. Gandhi had appealed the conviction and also filed two applications seeking the suspension of the sentence and a stay on the conviction during the pendency of the appeal. The court granted bail to Gandhi against a surety of Rs 15,000 and will hear his application seeking suspension of conviction on April 13, 2023. The court issued notice to the respondents and directed them to file their objections to Gandhi’s applications by April 10.
Rahul Gandhi filed two applications through his advocates Kirit Panwala and Tarannum Cheema. The first application sought the suspension of the two-year sentence and requested that he be “released on bail” while his criminal appeal is pending. The second application sought that the conviction by the magistrate court be “stayed during the pendency of the appeal in the interest of justice.” These applications were filed before the court of Additional District Judge R P Mogera. Rahul Gandhi arrived at the Surat District and Sessions Court with his sister and Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Monday.
