Rahul Gandhi to appeal in Surat court over his conviction in defamation case

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi will appear in a Gujarat court today to appeal against his conviction and two-year sentencing in a 2019 defamation case.Rahul Gandhi is likely to move a plea in Surat's sessions court to set aside the Magistrate order convicting him in the defamation case for a remark seen as an insult to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The former Congress president, sources say, will also ask for an interim stay on the conviction which would also restore his Lok Sabha membership. The 52-year-old was convicted by a court and sentenced to prison for two years in Gujarat last month for a 2019 speech in which he linked PM Modi's last name with two fugitive businessmen, remarking how the "thieves" shared the same last name.The court, however, granted him bail for 30 days to appeal the verdict.