Rahul Gandhi nominated to parliamentary standing committee on defence

Days after his Lok Sabha membership was restored, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was on Wednesday nominated to the parliamentary standing committee on defence.

Congress MP Amar Singh too has been nominated to the committee, according to a Lok Sabha bulletin.

Newly elected Aam Aadmi Party member of Lok Sabha Sushil Kumar Rinku has been nominated to the committee on agriculture, animal husbandry and food processing. Rinku had recently won the Jalandhar Lok Sabha bypoll and is the sole AAP member in the Lower House of Parliament.

NCP's Faizal P P Mohammed, whose Lok Sabha membership was restored in March, has been nominated to the committee on consumer affairs, food and public distribution.

Before being disqualified in March, Gandhi was a member of the parliamentary panel on defence.

On August 7, the Lok Sabha membership of Gandhi was restored, days after the Supreme Court stayed his conviction in a 2019 defamation case over his "Modi surname" remarks.

Gandhi was disqualified as a Lok Sabha member on March 24, with effect from March 23, after a Gujarat court convicted him in the case and sentenced him to two years in jail.

A punishment for two years and above automatically disqualifies a lawmaker. He represents Wayanad in the Lok Sabha.