In a big setback, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi was disqualified as a member of the Lok Sabha from the date of his conviction in the 2019 defamation case over 'Modi surname' remarks.
"Consequent upon his conviction by the Court of Chief Judicial Magistrate, Surat...Rahul Gandhi Member of Lok Sabha representing the Wayanad Parliamentary Constituency of Kerala stands disqualified from the membership of Lok Sabha from the date of his conviction...in terms of the provisions of Article 102 (1) (e) of the Constitution of India read with Section 8 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951," read the order.
Meanwhile, Jairam Ramesh tweeted that “We will fight this battle both legally and politically. We will not be intimated or silenced.”
Meanwhile, several opposition party members were detained for protesting at Vijay Chowk on Friday.
Opposition parties led by Congress marched towards the Rashtrapati Bhavan from nearby Vijay Chowk amid heavy security deployed in the premises. Congress leaders marched with the banner "democracy in danger".
MPs were detained and taken away to nearby police stations in a bus and the march was dispersed.
Police said that they did not had the permission for the march.
Several opposition parties on Friday took out protest march from Parliament House alleging that democracy is in "danger" and they also demanded a JPC probe into the Adani issue.
Prominent leaders, including K C Venugopal, Adhir Chowdhury, K Suresh, Manickam Tagore, Imran Pratapgarhi and Mohammed Javed, were stopped by the police and detained at Vijay Chowk here for violating prohibitory orders, said the opposition.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, also raised the issue of Rahul Gandhi's conviction in a 2019 criminal defamation case by a Surat court and alleged that the government was targeting the opposition with cases to suppress their voices.
Kharge also hit out at BJP chief J P Nadda over his allegation that Rahul Gandhi compared OBC communities to thieves and accused the BJP of indulging in "caste politics".
