Surat court convicts Rahul Gandhi in 2019 defamation case over 'Modi remark

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has been convicted by a Surat court on Thursday in a criminal defamation case over his alleged remark during the 2019 Lok Sabha election. Rahul Gandhi at a rally in Karnataka's Kolar wondered how come "all thieves have Modi as the common surname". Rahul Gandhi was present at the court when the verdict was announced.

Rahul Gandhi made the alleged remarks while addressing a rally at Kolar in Karnataka ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.The court of Chief Judicial Magistrate HH Varma had last week concluded hearing final arguments from both sides and set March 23 to pronounce its judgment in the four-year-old defamation case, Gandhi’s lawyer Kirit Panwala had said.Gandhi had last appeared before the Surat court in the case, filed under Indian Penal Code (IPC) sections 499 and 500 (dealing with defamation), in October 2021 to record his statement.