New Delhi, Mar 24 (PTI) The action against Rahul Gandhi raises the larger question of whether the right to represent people can be taken away upon first conviction without even a single appeal in a higher court, former Union law minister Ashwani Kumar said after the Congress leader's disqualification from Lok Sabha on Friday.

The Lok Sabha Secretariat disqualified Gandhi as MP from Wayanad in Kerala a day after he was convicted in a 2019 criminal defamation case and sentenced to two years imprisonment for his remark "How come all thieves have Modi as the common surname?"

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Following his disqualification, he would not be able to contest elections for eight years unless a higher court stays his conviction and sentence.

"While the legality of the judgment of the Surat court in the defamation case against Rahul Gandhi will be challenged, the decision raises a larger question about the harshness and disproportionality of the consequences of a two-year sentence upon conviction," the senior lawyer said.

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The Supreme Court in a 2013 verdict had said that any MP or MLA stands disqualified from the time of his conviction if a sentence of two or more years is pronounced.

The former Union minister said the spate of disqualifications of members of state assemblies and Parliament in the recent past has given reason to consider a review of the existing law to provide reasonable opportunity to a lawmaker to question the conviction without incurring disqualification.

"It is time to consider whether a valuable democratic and statutory right to represent people can be taken away upon first conviction without even a single appeal to a higher judicial forum," Kumar said.

He also claimed that an "ordinance sought to be introduced by the UPA government was intended to introduce a provision for appeal to address the harsh operation of the law".

Kumar said it is well established that oppressive and disproportionate punishment is counter productive and does not serve the cause of justice.

The majesty of law is best secured by its acceptability in the consciousness of the nation, the former Rajya Sabha member said.

He said a progressive evolution of the law demands a purposive legislative and political response to the experience and application of laws.

"Hopefully, a political consensus can be achieved on the imperatives for such a law," Kumar said.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)