NEW DELHI
\nIndia\u2019s main opposition leader Rahul Gandhi was restored to parliament Monday after the Supreme Court last week suspended his defamation conviction over political comments criticizing Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
\nGandhi is the scion of India\u2019s premier political dynasty and his reinstatement was welcomed by other members of the Congress party, which was once dominant but has lost the past two elections to Modi\u2019s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
\nGandhi\u2019s disqualification \u201chas ceased to operate subject to further judicial pronouncements,\u201d Utpal Kumar Singh, secretary general of the lower parliament house, said in a statement.
\nThe 53-year-old Congress party leader was sentenced to two years\u2019 imprisonment in March in a case that critics flagged as an effort to stifle political opposition in the world\u2019s largest democracy.
\nThe conviction stemmed from a remark made during the 2019 election campaign when Gandhi had asked why \u201call thieves have Modi as (their) common surname.\u201d
\nHis comments were portrayed as a slur against the prime minister and against all those with the same surname, which is associated with the lower rungs of India\u2019s caste hierarchy.
\nAnyone sentenced to a custodial term of two years or more is ineligible to sit in India\u2019s parliament, forcing Gandhi\u2019s expulsion from the body in March.
\nHe was turfed out of the legislature as a result but stayed out of jail while appealing to the Supreme Court in New Delhi.
\nCongress head Mallikarjun Kharge said it was \u201ca welcome step,\u201d and called on the government to concentrate on \u201cgovernance rather than denigrating democracy by targeting opposition leaders.\u201d
\nFellow Congress party MP Shashi Tharoor welcomed Gandhi\u2019s reinstatement \u201cwith enormous relief.\u201d \u201cHe can now resume his duties in the Lok Sabha (lower house of parliament) to serve the people of India and his constituents… A victory of justice and for our democracy,\u201d he said.
\nMany Congress leaders posted videos and messages hailing Monday\u2019s order and Kharge offered sweets to opposition leaders. Dancing supporters waving flags gathered outside Congress headquarters in New Delhi, shouting slogans backing Gandhi and thumping drums. Gandhi is expected to rejoin the lower house on Monday afternoon, where he sits as a lawmaker from the southern state of Kerala.
\nIndia\u2019s top court suspended Gandhi\u2019s defamation conviction on Friday and said the initial trial had failed to justify imposing the maximum sentence for his campaign rally comments four years ago.
\n\u201cThe order of conviction needs to be stayed pending final adjudication,\u201d Justice B.R. Gavai said in his ruling.
\nGandhi is the son, grandson and great-grandson of former prime ministers, beginning with independence leader Jawaharlal Nehru.
\nCongress was once the dominant force of Indian politics but Gandhi has lost two elections to Modi and his Hindu nationalist BJP after being cast as a princeling out of touch with the concerns of ordinary Indians.
\nThe weakened Congress party has tried to stitch a grand coalition with disparate regional opposition parties in the run-up to the 2024 national elections to challenge Modi, who hopes to win his third successive term in office.
\nThey hope to beat the BJP by challenging what they say is its centralized and nationalistic appeal to voters.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
NEW DELHI India\u2019s main opposition leader Rahul Gandhi was restored to parliament Monday after the Supreme Court last week suspended his defamation conviction over political comments criticizing Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Gandhi is the scion of India\u2019s premier political dynasty and his reinstatement was welcomed by other members of the Congress party, which was once […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":347786,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-347772","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n