New Delhi:
The Wayanad Lok Sabha constituency in Kerala, which fell vacant yesterday after Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was disqualified as a Member of Parliament, may witness bypoll by September.
Mr Gandhi’s disqualification came following his conviction in a defamation case and a two-year jail sentence by a court in Gujarat’s Surat on Thursday. The Congress leader has been granted bail for 30 days to appeal the verdict.
Bypolls to vacant seats in the Parliament and state legislatures must be held within six months from when the seat fell vacant, according to Section 151A of the Representation of the People Act, 2015.
It was this Act that paved way for Mr Gandhi’s removal as an MP. Section 8(3) of the Act says an MP attracts disqualification the moment she or he is convicted and sentenced for at least two years.
The Lok Sabha Secretariat notified Mr Gandhi’s disqualification yesterday and now it’s up to the Election Commission to announce the bypoll dates.
There are three vacant seats in Lok Sabha now – Jalandhar, Lakshadweep and Wayanad, its website showed.
Mr Gandhi lost his Amethi seat in Uttar Pradesh in 2019 and was elected from Wayanad, his second seat.
The defamation case pertains to his alleged “how come all thieves have Modi as the common surname” remark at a pre-election rally in Karnataka’s Kolar in 2019. A former Gujarat minister had filed a complaint alleging Mr Gandhi had defamed the entire Modi community.
Convicted and sentenced in the case, Mr Gandhi now plans to challenge the local court’s verdict in a sessions court, according to his team.
Mr Gandhi will address a press conference today at 1 pm.
