New Delhi: Since September 2013, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is the 11th person to have lost membership as a lawmaker and is the third Lok Sabha MP to get severe punishment following court orders.
Before him, two Lok Sabha members who were disqualified were Lalu Prasad of RJD in September 2013 and P P Mohammed Faizal of NCP from Lakshadweep in January this year. For Lalu Prasad, the case was related to Bihar’s infamous fodder scam, while Mohammed Faizal lost the membership as the court pronounced a verdict against him in connection to an attempt to murder case.
Others in the list include the former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and the late chief of AIADMK, J Jayalalitha. She lost her membership as MLA of Bodinayakkanur in Tamil Nadu in the disproportionate assets case in September 2014.
Azam Khan of the Samajwadi Party also lost his Rampur assembly seat in Uttar Pradesh after being convicted by a court of law for a ‘hate speech’ in October 2022.
Among others who lost their membership include Kuldeep Singh Sengar – Rape charge in February 2020, Pradeep Chaudhary (Congress MLA in Haryana) on charge of ‘assault’ in January 2021 and Abdullah Azam Khan (Samajwadi) for an attack on a CRPF camp in February 2023.
Other such legislators who lost membership included Anant Singh, Vikram Singh Saini and Anil Kumar Sahni.
Union Minister Anurag Singh Thakur says that Congress leader Rahul needs to understand the ‘well-planned conspiracy’ within the Congress to ‘get rid of’ him by not challenging the Surat court’s verdict on time despite having a battery of lawyers at the party.
“Ek sochi samjhi saazish…,” he remarked on March 24. “Who hatched this conspiracy in the Congress party, Rahulji it is for you to understand this”.
“One should go into details and deep on this. Who are they who wanted to get rid of Rahul Gandhi? The Congress party has a battery of lawyers….is there not a single person and lawyer who could have advised correctly (to challenge the Surat court order),” Anurag Singh Thakur told reporters.
Blasting at Rahul Gandhi, the Union Minister said, “I can say he is the epitome of unparliamentary behaviour”.
Anurag Singh Thakur also pointed out that Rahul Gandhi has been indulging in making defamatory charges rather repeatedly. “Rahul Gandhi is on bail in seven cases…in fact in Patna court, he has faced similar charges for his remarks that all Modis are thieves,” the Minister pointed out.
