The Supreme Court on Friday sought responses from former Gujarat minister Purnesh Modi and the state government on Congress leader Rahul Gandhi's appeal challenging the high court verdict which dismissed his plea seeking a stay on his conviction in a defamation case over his "Modi surname" remark.
A bench of Justices B R Gavai and P K Mishra issued notices to Purnesh Modi, who had filed a criminal defamation case in 2019 against Gandhi over his "How come all thieves have Modi as the common surname?" remark made during an election rally at Kolar in Karnataka on April 13, 2019, and the Gujarat government on Gandhi's appeal.
"The limited question at this stage is whether the conviction deserves to be stayed," the bench observed.
Senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, appearing for Gandhi, said the Congress leader has suffered for 111 days, lost one Parliament session and is about to lose another session.
The top court has posted the matter for further hearing on August 4.
In his appeal filed on July 15, Gandhi has said that if the July 7 judgment is not stayed, it would lead to throttling of free speech, expression, thought, and statement.
The Congress leader was disqualified as a Member of Parliament on March 24 after a Gujarat court convicted him and sentenced him to a two-year imprisonment on charges of criminal defamation for comments he made about the Modi surname.
A stay on Gandhi's conviction could have paved the way for his reinstatement as a Lok Sabha MP but he failed to get any relief from either the sessions court or the Gujarat High Court.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
Featured Video Of The Day
Katrina Kaif Poses With Paparazzi After They Ask For A Picture With Her
Rahul Gandhi Told To Appear Before Pune Court In Savarkar Defamation Case Hearing In Defamation Case Against Rahul Gandhi In UP Postponed To October 1 Rahul Gandhi To Appear Before Bengaluru Court In Defamation Case Today Devendra Fadnavis Keeps Home, Eknath Shinde Gets 3 Maharashtra Ministries Parents On Mumbai Ferry Wanted To Toss Children In Sea. Rescuers Stopped Them Man Accidentally Drops iPhone In Temple Box. Why He Won't Get It Back Himachal Woman, 20, Dies In Mohali Building Collapse, Rescue Op Underway First Grief, Then A Political Tone Over Germany's Christmas Market Attack "What Type Of...": Revanth Reddy Says Allu Arjun Waved At Fans After Stampede Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.