Rahul going to Surat "to augment insult thrown at OBC community": BJP

KOLKATA: Bharatiya Janata Party on Monday lashed out at Rahul Gandhi who will be in Gujarat today to move Surat court for challenging his two-year jail term in a defamation case, and said that the Congress leader is going with his family and some chief ministers "with pomp and show" to "repeat and add to the insult" of the OBC community.

BJP national spokesperson Sambit Patra alleged that the group of Congress leaders including the chief ministers of some Congress-ruled states will create "mayhem" in the name of appealing against the lower court's order convicting Rahul Gandhi in a 2019 criminal defamation case over his 'Modi surname' remark.

"Rahul Gandhi, his family members, CMs Ashok Gehlot & Bhupesh Baghel are going to Surat & will be creating mayhem in the name of appealing (against the 2-year sentence) verdict. What's the need for this ruckus?" Patra said in a press conference.

Patra's reaction came after Rahul Gandhi is to file an appeal today in the Sessions court in Surat against his conviction and a two-year jail sentence in a criminal defamation case.

Congress expects that the court will take up the matter today itself. According to sources, Rahul Gandhi is expected to reach court at around 3 pm.

The BJP leader asked if the Congress leaders who will accompany Rahul Gandhi for the appeal want to "pressurise" the judiciary.

"Rahul Gandhi, is it not true that you used a casteist remark against the OBC community? You called them a thief and abused them. You are going to Surat with your family, and some chief ministers with pomp and show.

Do you want to pressurise the judiciary? Appealing is a democratic right. You are going to augment the insult that you have thrown to the OBC community by going and staging this kind of protest in Surat. Are you trying to pressurise the Indian judiciary through these gimmicks of yours?" Patra said.

Further slamming Rahul Gandhi over his "arrogance", the BJP leader alleged that he was not ready to apologise to the lower court for his remark.

"The lower court had given him (Rahul Gandhi) opportunity to apologise, but he denied stating that he is Rahul and he will not apologise. Rahul and responsibility never go together. Why is this arrogance? The Supreme Court had pulled him up for his remarks over Narendra Modi. He wasn't ready to apologise in Supreme Court, but the court made him apologise in written in the form of affidavit," Patra said.

"Rahul Gandhi did not apologise to the lower court in Surat. Today, he is going to Surat with his family to repeat and add to the insult to the OBC community," he added.

The former MP from Wayanad was convicted and sentenced to two years in jail by the court of Chief Judicial Magistrate H H Varma on March 23 in the defamation case over his "Modi surname" remark in 2019 in Karnataka.