An Indian court has rejected opposition leader Rahul Gandhi's appeal seeking a stay on his defamation conviction, saying there were “no reasonable grounds” to do so.
The Gujarat High Court ruling, which was handed down on Friday, is a setback as it effectively prevents him for standing for election next year.
The Congress party leader was given a two-year jail sentence in March. However, his arrest was put on hold until he has exhausted all appeals.
Gandhi was expelled from parliament following his conviction over comments deemed insulting to Prime Minister Narendra Modi that he made during a 2019 election rally.
The opposition leader linked Mr Modi to high-profile criminals and asked why they shared the same surname.
Earlier this year, he embarked on 150-day march called Bharat Jodo Yatra – the country's longest in more than a century, during which he covered 3,500km and accused Mr Modi of dividing the country.
Gandhi's lawyer said the crime for which he had been convicted was not “serious” and an eight-year ban on him standing for elections was “virtually semi-permanent in politics”.
During a trip to the US in May, the Congress leader accused Mr Modi's government of threatening the opposition and using government agencies to suppress dissent.
