All belongings shifted, Rahul Gandhi to vacate bungalow on Saturday

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Friday moved out all his belongings from his official residence of 12 Tughlaq Lane a day before the last day mandated by the Lok Sabha notice. The former Wayanad MP will officially hand over the bungalow to the Lok Sabha secretariat on April 22. The shifting process started on April 14. The remaining things were moved out on Friday evening, a day after his plea for a stay on the conviction in the defamation case was rejected by a Surat sessions court. Read | Pawan Khera's dig at Azad as Rahul Gandhi shifts belongings from Delhi bungalow

Rahul Gandhi has already started living with his mother Sonia Gandhi at 10, Janpath residence.

On March 23, Rahul Gandhi was convicted in a defamation case for a comment that he made in 2019 ahead of the Lok Sabha election. At a rally in Karnataka's Kolar, Rahul Gandhi said, "How come all thieves have Modi surname in common". The comment got many cases filed against Rahul Gandhi and in one such a case filed by Gujarat's BJP leader Purnesh Modi, Rahul Gandhi was convicted after four years. The Congress leader was given the maximum punishment of two years of jail in the defamation case which got him disqualified from the Lok Sabha. Complainant Purnesh Modi opposed to it and said Rahul Gandhi is a repeat offender and is not remorseful for his Modi-surname remark.

Rahul Gandhi was given a month's time and was asked to vacate his official bungalow by April 22.

The court granted him bail but his plea to stay the conviction was rejected by a higher court on Thursday which said there was no exceptional situation to stay the conviction. In his plea, Rahul Gandhi said the trial was not fair and his disqualification will lead to irreparable damage to both him and the constituency.

Poulomi Ghosh is a journalist with Hindustan Times, New Delhi. ...view detail