Surat Court Dismisses Rahul Gandhi's Appeal for Stay on Defamation Conviction.

The Surat district and sessions court dismissed Rahul Gandhi's appeal for staying his conviction in the criminal defamation case, stating that his counsel failed to prove that "irreversible and irrevocable damage would be caused to the appellant (Gandhi)" if the conviction was not stayed. The court disagreed with the objections raised by Gandhi's counsel to the maintainability of BJP MLA Purnesh Modi's complaint, stating that the "derogatory" remarks "certainly harmed his (Purnesh Modi's) reputation" and caused him "pain and agony".