'Appreciate it and thank PM Modi': Shatrughan Sinha on Rahul's disqualification

Actor-turned-politician Shatrughan Sinha on Sunday took a swipe at Prime Minister Narendra Modi over the disqualification of Rahul Gandhi from Lok Sabha.

He said that the disqualification helps the opposition parties to put up a unified fight against the BJP. "Well, on the one hand, what they have done appears to be an example of Vinash Kale Viprit Buddhi (In adverse situations, people lose their ability to take sound decisions), but on the other hand, politically it will benefit a lot. It has given the opposition a weapon which will not only protect democracy but also help in giving an additional 100 seats to Rahul Gandhi and the Opposition," ANI quoted Shatrughan Sinha as saying.

"We appreciate it and thank our friend, PM Modi," he added. While citing a Chinese saying, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader said that it is a "great political move." "Look, it's off to a great start. There is a saying in Chinese that a journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step. This is a great political move as it has brought the opposition parties together," he claimed.

"Today the country's most popular personality and a street fighter Mamta Banerjee has come forward on this issue in support of democracy and our friend and Delhi's CM Kejriwal has also come forward on such a serious issue," he added.

Rahul Gandhi, on Friday, was disqualified as a member of the Lok Sabha, a day after a Surat court sentenced him to two-year imprisonment in a defamation case filed against him over his 'Modi surname' remark.

The decision came pertaining to his remark made in April 2019, where he had said "how come all the thieves have Modi as the common surname" at a Lok Sabha election rally at Kolar in Karnataka. The court approved Gandhi's bail on a surety and stayed the sentence for 30 days to allow him to approach the higher courts.

Gandhi has been disqualified from Lok Sabha on Friday after his conviction by a Surat court in a 2019 criminal defamation case. Announcing his disqualification in a notification, the Lok Sabha Secretariat said that it is effective from March 23, the day of his conviction.

The Surat court on Thursday sentenced Gandhi to two years in jail in a defamation case filed on the basis of a complaint by BJP MLA Purnesh Modi for the Congress leader's remark "How come all thieves have Modi as the common surname?" while delivering a speech in 2019.