48 years on, another Gandhi challenges disqualification in Supreme court

Rahul Gandhi

On 24 June 1975, Justice VR Krishna Iyer, who was holding court as a vacation judge of the Supreme Court, stayed the order of the Allahabad High Court, which had nullified the election of the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi and disqualified her from contesting in the elections for six years. Her grandson, Rahul Gandhi, was a three-year-old then.

About 48 years later, on 21 July 2023, another bench of the Supreme Court will decide whether or not Rahul Gandhi’s conviction for criminal defamation can be stayed. Rahul Gandhi was convicted by a Magistrate’s court in Surat in March 2023 for allegedly remarking that "all thieves have Modi surname" during the campaign for the 2019 elections.

While his grandmother, Indira Gandhi, was the Prime Minister of India when she was disqualified, Gandhi was a prominent opposition leader when he was disqualified.

Moneycontrol explains why these Congress leaders were disqualified, what the courts held, and how their cases ultimately came to the Supreme Court.

Indira Gandhi’s case

Indira Gandhi versus Raj Narain is prominently known as the case that led to the declaration of Emergency in India. Raj Narain was a freedom fighter and an opposition leader who contested the 1971 general election against Indira Gandhi in the Rae Bareilly Lok Sabha seat. Indira Gandhi won the election by a huge margin, and her party won the general elections.

Narain filed a petition at the Allahabad High Court alleging that Indira Gandhi used her powers as Prime Minister to employ the government machinery and resources to win the election. He alleged that Indira Gandhi unfairly used government employees to campaign for her.

Four years later, in 1975, Justice Jagmohanlal Sinha, a judge of the Allahabad High Court held that Gandhi was guilty of corrupt practices, and nullified her election. The judge further disqualified her from parliament and barred her from contesting elections for six years. Indira Gandhi appealed against this order before the Supreme Court.

The case came up before Justice VR Krishna Iyer, who was holding the court during its annual summer vacation in June 1975. He stayed the order, subject to certain terms, and Gandhi declared Emergency shortly thereafter. In November 1975, the Supreme Court overturned the Allahabad High Court’s verdict, which eventually led to Gandhi continuing as the Prime Minister of India.

Gandhi had also brought in an amendment to the constitution, according to which the courts of law could not question the election of a Prime Minister or a Speaker. However, this amendment was struck down by a constitution bench of the Supreme Court.

Rahul Gandhi’s case

While campaigning for the 2019 general elections at Kolar in Karnataka, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi allegedly remarked ‘How come all thieves have Modi surname?’ A Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MLA from Gujarat named Purnesh Modi filed a criminal defamation case alleging that Gandhi’s statement had defamed the community.

Four years later, on March 23, Gandhi was convicted by the chief judicial magistrate in Surat and sentenced to two years in prison. On March 24, he was disqualified from the Lok Sabha on account of his conviction.

In April, a sessions court in Surat refused to stay his conviction, as a result of which Gandhi approached the Gujarat High Court. In July, a single judge of the Gujarat High Court refused to stay Gandhi’s conviction. He has now approached the Supreme Court to obtain the stay.

Meanwhile, Rahul Gandhi continues to be disqualified from parliament.

According to the Representation of the People Act of 1951, MPs and MLAs are disqualified the moment they are convicted of an offence with a sentence of imprisonment for not less than two years. The elected representative will continue to be disqualified for six years after release from prison. In Gandhi's case, the conviction, if upheld, will disqualify him for eight years.

Gandhi will have to obtain a stay on his two-year conviction to be reinstated as a member of the Lok Sabha.