New Delhi: A huge number of leaders and supporters of Congress have welcomed the Supreme Court verdict staying the conviction of Rahul Gandhi in a 2019 defamation case.
The Supreme Court on Friday stayed the conviction of Gandhi in the defamation case over his Modi surname remark.
Reacting to the development. Priyanka Gandhi said on Twitter, "'Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth ~Gautama Buddha'."
The Congress general secretary thanked the apex court for the decision and wrote "Satyameva Jayate".
A three-judge bench of Justices B R Gavai, P S Narasimha and Sanjay Kumar said there is no doubt that the utterances were not in good taste and that a person in public life is expected to exercise caution while making public speeches.
"No reason has been given by the trial judge for imposing maximum sentence, the order of conviction needs to be stayed pending final adjudication," the bench said.
Senior Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala stated that the verdict is a big relief for the people of Wayanad. He noted that no one can hide the truth.
Addressing the media in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala opposition leader V D Satheesan stated that the verdict is a reply to those who attempted to silence Rahul Gandhi.
“Congratulations to the people of Wayanad upon having their representation in the Lok Sabha restored,” wrote Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Twitter.
The verdict turned a sigh of relief for the people of Wayanad, as the northern constituency in Kerala lost its representation in the Lok Sabha with Rahul's disqualification.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin expressed happiness over the verdict and noted that 'Justice prevails'.
“Welcome the Hon'ble #SupremeCourt's decision staying the conviction of dear brother Thiru @RahulGandhi in the criminal defamation case. This decision reaffirms our belief in the strength of our judiciary and the importance of safeguarding democratic values,” Stalin penned on Twitter.
Gujarat MLA Jignesh Mevani took to his official Twitter handle and shared a video of Rahul Gandhi's speech in which he was declaring that he won't issue an apology for saying the truth.
“My name is not Rahul "Savarkar", My name is "Rahul Gandhi". I will never apologize for speaking the truth. He did what he said. Proud of you Rahul!,” Jignesh captioned the video showering praises on the leader.
At the same time hashtags like #RaGaisBack and #RahulGandhi are trending on social media with the news on the SC verdict made headlines.
Former Gujarat minister Purnesh Modi had filed a criminal defamation case in 2019 against Gandhi over his "How come all thieves have Modi as the common surname?" remark made during an election rally in Kolar in Karnataka on April 13, 2019.
