The BJP claimed that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is also "failing legally" after a Gujarat court verdict on Thursday held him guilty in a 2019 criminal defamation case.

A court in Surat sentenced Gandhi to two years in jail in the case filed on a complaint by BJP MLA Purnesh Modi for his alleged remark, “How come all the thieves have Modi as the common surname?” BJP spokesperson Sudhanshu Trivedi said Gandhi should consider what he says, particularly while using words that may be construed as being disrespectful about a community or person.

"He (Gandhi) should be careful about the words and he should very categorically respect Indian tradition and the Indian Constitution, but unfortunately he is failing not only politically but also morally and constitutionally and this (the verdict) shows that he is also failing legally," Trivedi told reporters here.

"I think in politics today everybody should be careful about any words and particularly any disrespectful word towards any community or any person or community, (or words used) in a negative and derogatory manner. Definitely, it is not appropriate for any leader of Rahul Gandhi's stature."

To a question on the Congress's allegations that the BJP was frightened by Gandhi's recent Bharat Jodo Yatra due to to which he was "framed in a defamation case", Trivedi responded with sarcasm: "The success of Bharat Jodo Yatra is very well reflected in the elections of the three northeastern states in which the Congress was completely wiped out." "It is more 'Bharat Todo' rather than 'Bharat Jodo'," he quipped.

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