Allahabad High Court: Disqualification Not Attracted When Conviction Is Stayed

The Allahabad High Court dismissed a petition seeking Rahul Gandhi’s disqualification from the Lok Sabha, noting that the Supreme Court had already stayed his 2023 conviction in a defamation case.

The Court observed that a stayed conviction has no operative effect, and therefore, Section 8(3) of the Representation of the People Act could not bar his 2024 election from Rae Bareli.

It rejected arguments that his nomination was wrongly accepted, holding that the legal position on the effect of a stay is settled and the plea raised no substantial question.

The plea was found to raise no substantial question.

[Ashok Pandey v. Rahul Gandhi & Ors.]