New Delhi: After Rahul Gandhi was convicted in a 2019 criminal defamation case by a Surat court on Thursday (March 23), the Congress and several other Opposition parties came out in overwhelming support of him. The Congress, upset with the verdict, has decided to hold a march against the verdict by the Gujarat court at Delhi’s Vijay Chowk on Friday (March 24).
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. The Congress party decided to take to the streets against Rahul Gandhi’s conviction and meet the President of India with other parties.
“We will hold protests across Delhi and in other states on Monday on this issue,” Jairam Ramesh 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.
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.
“We have analyzed the situation. The verdict was so unfortunate as far as Congress Party is concerned. We will do a solidarity march for Congress Party. We are seeking an appointment with the President. From day 1 onwards, when Rahul Gandhi raised the issue of Adani, the Government of India side came to stop him. They do not want Rahul Gandhi to speak in Parliament. They are varying all options to stop his voice,” Venugopal told ANI.
“But Rahul Gandhi and Congress party will speak. This issue is not because of Rahul Gandhi. It is because the country’s environment is like that. All opposition is getting suppressed. I am happy that parties are showing solidarity,” added Venugopal.
The Congress claimed that the court verdict was “infirm, erroneous and unsustainable”, evoking a sharp reaction from the BJP which slammed it for its criticism of the order, asking whether the opposition party wants “complete freedom” for Gandhi to “abuse” others. The Congress also said that it would challenge the judgement in a higher court.
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.
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