Rahul Gandhi disqualified: Congress workers protest in Lucknow, detained by police

Congress workers in Lucknow have been detained during protest against the disqualification of Rahul Gandhi as Member of Parliament.

#WATCH | Congress workers in Lucknow detained during protest against the disqualification of Rahul Gandhi as member of Parliament pic.twitter.com/VKMfVa2xIo

— ANI UP/Uttarakhand (@ANINewsUP) March 24, 2023

The disqualificatin of the Congress leader from the Lok Sabha on Friday, March 24, comes after his conviction by the Court of Chief Judicial Magistrate, Surat, in a defamation case over his 'Modi surname' remark. 

The Lower House issued a notification announcing the disqualification of the Waynad MP. The notification by the Lok Sabha secretariat said, "Consequent upon his conviction by the Court of Chief Judicial Magistrate, Surat, in C.C./18712/2019, Shri Rahul Gandhi, Member of Lok Sabha, representing the Wayanad Parliamentary Constituency of Kerala, stands disqualified from the membership of Lok Sabha from the date of his conviction, i.e. 23 March 2023, in terms of the provisions of Article 102(1)(e) of the Constitution of India read with Section 8 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951."

Congress General Secretary in-charge Communications, Jairam Ramesh, said the party would not be "intimidated or silenced".
Taking to Twitter, he said, "We will fight this battle both legally & politically. We will not be intimidated or silenced. Instead of a JPC into the PM-linked Adani MahaMegaScam, Rahul Gandhi stands disqualified. Indian Democracy: Om Shanti."

A wave of outrage has rolled out across the nation among the opposition, and reactions from Congress leaders are pouring in.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge called  it "political vendetta."

"They (BJP) tried all ways to disqualify him. They don't want to keep those who are speaking the truth, but we will continue to speak the truth. We'll continue to demand JPC, if needed, we'll go to jail to save democracy," Kharge added.