Rahul Row: Kharge Accuses Centre of Double Standards

New Delhi: Congress boss Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday accused the Centre of double standards, saying while it disqualified Rahul Gandhi with lightning speed, a Gujarat MP who was convicted in a criminal case did not face the same action.

Kharge was referring to the BJP’s Amreli MP Naranbhai Bhikhabhai Kachhadia, who was awarded a three-year jail term by a court. Kachhadia’s conviction was later quashed by the Supreme Court.

Gandhi was convicted by a lower court in Gujarat’s Surat and sentenced to prison for two years on March 23 for a speech in which he linked Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s last name with two fugitive businessmen, remarking how the “thieves” shared the same last name.