New Delhi: Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray called Rahul Gandhi's removal from Parliament a "murder of democracy" on Friday. According to Thackeray, "calling a thief a thief" has become a crime in this country, and this is the "beginning of the end of dictatorship." “Rahul Gandhi's membership of parliament has finally terminated.



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Calling a thief a thief has become a crime in our country. Thieves looting the country are still free and Rahul Gandhi has been punished. This is a direct murder of democracy,” said the former Maharashtra chief minister. "All government systems are under pressure. This is the beginning of the end of dictatorship,” he added.


Priyanka Chaturvedi, a Shiv Sena leader, and Rajya Sabha member, branded the action "vindictive and disgusting." Gandhi was disqualified from the Lok Sabha after a lower court in Gujarat declared him guilty of defamation for comments he made about Modi's surname.


The case against Gandhi arises from his remarks during an electoral rally in 2019 in which he said, "Why do all thieves have Modi as their surname?" It then named fugitive Indian diamond tycoon Nirav Modi, banned Indian Premier League chief Lalit Modi, and Narendra Modi. Purnesh Modi, a BJP leader, filed the defamation case, claiming Gandhi's comments "defamed the entire Modi community."


Meanwhile, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin extended support to Congress MP Rahul Gandhi on his conviction in the Modi surname case on Thursday. The Surat Court sentenced Rahul Gandhi to two years in prison for allegedly defaming Modi's surname during the Karnataka elections in 2019.



It's highly deplorable & unprecedented that a leader like Thiru @RahulGandhi is convicted for a comment which he himself said was not made with blameworthy mind,” said MK Stalin.


BJP's targeting of opposition parties has now landed in trampling of democratic rights and such atrocities will see its end. I spoke with brother #RahulGandhi and conveyed my solidarity. I'm confident that justice will win ultimately!, he added, as per ANI quote.


Meanwhile, Congress workers gathered in front of Rahul Gandhi's home to protest the judgement. In response to the ruling, Congress members in Chennai stopped the road near the Secretariat.