If there is a delay, the Congress will take the matter to court, sources have revealed. The united opposition will also include this issue in the list they are highlighting in parliament.
The documents for reinstating Rahul Gandhi of the Congress in parliament are prepared and all that is left is for the Lok Sabha Speaker to give approval. This is expected to happen tomorrow, according to sources. In case of a delay, the Congress will take the matter to court, sources have said. The united opposition will also include this issue in the list they are highlighting in parliament if the Speaker does not act promptly, as he did when he disqualified Mr Gandhi after his conviction in a defamation case.
In the case of PP Mohammed Faizal, a member of the Nationalist Congress Party and MP from Lakshadweep, it took over a month for the restoration to take place.
The MP, who was disqualified in January after being sentenced to 10 years in prison, had to approach the Supreme Court when he was not reinstated in parliament despite the Kerala High Court order freezing the sentence. He was reinstated before the Supreme Court hearing in March.
Mr Gandhi was disqualified in May after being sentenced to two years in jail in a defamation case for his remarks about Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s last name. During a rally in Kolar, Karnataka, before the 2019 general elections, Mr Gandhi had said, “How is it that all thieves have Modi as their common last name?”
After the reprieve, Mr Gandhi, who has consistently refused to apologize, tweeted, “Regardless of the circumstances, my duty remains the same. Protect the idea of India.”
