Editorial: Assault on democracy

When the matter is slated for an appeal in the higher court, it is preposterous to disqualify Rahul Gandhi, a move that amounts to abusing constitutional institutions

Hyderabad: The swift disqualification of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi from Lok Sabha, a day after his conviction in a defamation case by a court in Gujarat, is highly reprehensible and raises questions over growing political vindictiveness and curtailment of democratic freedom. It is bizarre on the part of the Lok Sabha Secretariat to issue a notification, disqualifying the opposition leader under Section 8(3) of the Representation of People Act, 1951, in less than 24 hours after a court in Surat sentenced him to two years in jail in a criminal defamation case over his “Modi surname” remarks. When the matter is slated for an appeal in the higher court, it is preposterous to disqualify him, a move that amounts to abusing the constitutional institutions. This is a clear case of gross misuse of defamation law to stifle free speech and settle political scores. In his speech at an election rally in Karnataka in April 2019, Rahul insinuated that every Modi was a thief. The comment may have been in poor taste and deserves to be condemned, but the punishment is disproportionate to the alleged offence and the disqualification move that followed smacks of political vendetta. A written apology would have served the cause of justice instead of a harsh two-year imprisonment. The trial court should have taken a cue from Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s apology spree of 2018, when he had expressed regret for his statements against rival politicians such as Nitin Gadkari, Kapil Sibal and Bikram Singh Majithia.

There is a familiar pattern in the BJP leadership’s offensive campaign, amplified by its social media warriors, targeting political rivals, particularly the scion of the Nehru family. Rahul’s recent remarks in London about the state of democracy in India have provided enough ammunition for the saffron party MPs who have been demanding an apology from him and even stalling Parliament over the issue. There is also a touch of irony to this unsavoury episode of disqualification. It was Rahul’s own brash act of publicly tearing up the UPA ordinance, that would have allowed a convicted lawmaker to continue in office till appeals were disposed of, appears to have returned to haunt him. According to the Representation of the People Act, a lawmaker sentenced to imprisonment of two years or more shall automatically stand disqualified from the date of such conviction. The suspension of sentence and stay of conviction is necessary to escape disqualification. Among the prominent politicians who faced disqualification under the RP Act were Lalu Prasad Yadav, the RJD supremo, who was disqualified from the Lok Sabha after his conviction in the fodder scam case in September 2013 and J Jayalalithaa, who had to resign from Tamil Nadu chief minister’s post in September 2014 after she was sentenced to four years in jail in a disproportionate assets case.

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