NEW DELHI: A day after Gujarat’s Surat court convicted and sentenced Rahul Gandhi to 2 years in jail in ‘Modi Surname’ case, Congress leader Renuka Chowdhury has said that she is going to file a defamation suit against PM Narendra Modi over his 'Suparnakha' remark in Parliament in 2018. Taking to Twitter, the former Union Minister also posed a question – “let’s see how fast the courts will act now?” 


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Along with her tweet, Chowdhury also shared a video showing PM Modi supposedly linking her laughter to a character - Suparnakha - in the Hindu epic Ramayana. "This classless megalomaniac referred to me as Surpanakha on the floor of the house. I will file a defamation case against him. Let's see how fast courts will act now..(sic)," she said in her tweet.


 



 


The tweet from the Congress leader came hours after the Surat district court held Rahul Gandhi guilty of his derogatory remarks on PM Modi’s ‘surname' and sentenced him to a two-year jail term. The Gandhi scion was convicted by the court over his “Why all thieves have Modi surname” jibe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi by the Surat district court. He was later granted bail and given 30 days' time to file an appeal. 


What Options Does Rahul Gandhi Have After Conviction?


 


In view of his conviction in the case, the question being asked is what options Rahul Gandhi is left with now and whether he will face disqualification and lose his Lok Sabha membership. Social media is abuzz with questions if the Representation of People Act would be applicable to him or not.


After Rahul Gandhi's conviction, his party has said that its legal team will pursue the option of going to a higher court. The Surat court has also granted him time to file an appeal against the same. Chief Judicial Magistrate HH Varma, in his order, said that Rahil Gandhi can appeal against his conviction and sentencing within 30 days – implying that his Lok Sabha membership will remain intact for now until the higher court decides on the matter.


Congress Plans Mass Agitation, To Meet President Murmu 


 


Meanwhile, Congress has decided to take to the streets against Rahul Gandhi's conviction and meet the President of India with other parties. The main opposition party announced a mass agitation immediately after the conviction of Rahul Gandhi in a defamation case and said it will not just fight the case legally but also politically.


In the wake of the verdict, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge convened a meeting of senior party leaders and MPs at his residence where after an hour of deliberations they decided to stage a protest at Vijay Chowk on Friday.


AICC general secretary Jairam Ramesh said the party will hold a meeting with other opposition leaders in the morning and would stage a protest march from Parliament House to Vijay Chowk. The opposition parties have also sought time from President Draupadi Murmu on Friday afternoon to raise the matter with her.


Ramesh said the meeting at Kharge's residence lasted around two hours and it was decided that the Party chief would hold a meeting with all Pradesh Congress chiefs and Congress Legislature Party leaders in the evening and plan agitations in states.


"We will hold protests across Delhi and in other states on Monday on this issue," Ramesh said. The matter is just not a legal issue, but also a serious political issue linked with the future of democracy in the country, he said.


"This is another major example of the Modi government's politics of vendetta, threat and intimidation. We will fight it legally as well as politically. We will not bow down or be intimidated by such politics and will turn this into a major political issue," Ramesh said.


His Congress colleague KC Venugopal also said that the party has analyzed the situation. "The verdict was so unfortunate as far as Congress Party is concerned. We will do a solidarity march for Congress Party. From day 1 onwards when Rahul Gandhi raised the issue of Adani, the Government of India side has been trying to stop him. They don’t want Rahul Gandhi to speak in Parliament. They are varying all options to stop his voice," said Venugopal.


The Congress general secretary said that Rahul Gandhi and the Congress party will continue to speak on the Adani issue. "All opposition parties are getting suppressed. I am happy that parties are showing solidarity with Rahul Gandhi," said Venugopal.