Bengaluru (ANI): Former Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Friday said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the ruling BJP have shown cowardice by suspending Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s membership from the Lok Sabha.

“Unable to face Rahul Gandhi’s truth, the Narendra Modi government has disqualified him from Lok Sabha membership and displayed cowardice. This is a dark day in Indian parliamentary democracy,” he said in a press statement.

He further mentioned that the Congress party would fight against the injustice done to Rahul Gandhi.

“Bharatiya Janata Party is full of sins. He (PM Modi) has driven the final nail into the coffin of his own destruction. There is no question of shying away from this fascist behaviour. We will fight against this injustice in the courts and in the streets,” he said.

“An unofficial state of emergency has been declared in India today. The central government has taken a decision on Rahul Gandhi as a warning to all those who speak against PM Narendra Modi, BJP and NDA government,” he added.

Siddaramaiah appealed to different political parties in India to unite against the suspension of Rahul Gandhi and he also requested Congress workers to protest peacefully.

“This is not just a threat to the Congress party or Rahul Gandhi, it is a threat to all democracy lovers who raise their voices against injustice. Everyone should forget the party and creed and protest against this together. Although it is true that millions of Congress party workers are hurt by the action taken against Rahul Gandhi, it is necessary to exercise restraint in this context. I request that no one should indulge in anger and protest peacefully,” the Congress leader said.

The disqualification came in the wake of Rahul’s conviction by a Surat court in a 2019 defamation case on Thursday. The disqualified Congress MP was sentenced to two years in prison following his conviction for a remark using the surname ‘Modi’ at a campaign event for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls in Karnataka. However, the court later approved his bail on a surety of Rs 15,000 while suspending his sentence for a period of 30 days during which he can challenge his conviction in a higher court.

Meanwhile, the Congress on Friday came down heavily on the Centre over Rahul’s disqualification as a Lok Sabha member, calling it a “strangulation of democracy” while exuding confidence that the disqualification will be revoked through a stay on his conviction by a higher court.

While addressing a press conference, Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi said, “This government is rattled because he clearly speaks with facts and figures on demonetisation. Be it the supposed clean chit to China, or the GST, he is consistently aggressive and open in his questioning. Therefore this government is finding new techniques for throttling his voice.”