NEW DELHI: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi handed over the keys of his official residence to the Lok Sabha secretariat on Saturday, a day after he moved out his belongings from the 12, Tughlaq Lane bungalow that he had moved into over 2 decades ago.

The former Congress president had to vacate the bungalow following his disqualification as MP after he was convicted and sentenced to two years in jail by a Surat court in March 23 for his “Modi surname” remark.
A disqualified MP is not entitled to a government accommodation and gets a one-month period to vacate his official residence.
On April 14, Rahul had shifted his office and some personal belongings from the bungalow to his mother Sonia Gandhi’s official residence 10, Janpath.

Gandhi moved out his remaining articles on Friday evening. A truck was seen exiting the building with his belongings.
A Surat court on March 23 had convicted Gandhi of defamation and given him two-year sentence, leading to his disqualification. He had challenged the magisterial court order in the sessions court in Surat which rejected his appeal to set aside the conviction which would have paved the way for his reinstatement as MP.
The party has said the sessions court order will be challenged in the Gujarat High Court next week.
A day after his disqualification, the Lok Sabha Secretariat had sent Gandhi a notice to vacate the premises by April 22.

A few years ago, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra was also asked to vacate her Lodhi Estate bungalow after her SPG security cover was removed.
Rahul Gandhi first got elected as an MP from Amethi in Uttar Pradesh in 2004 and shifted his constituency to Wayanad in 2019.
(With inputs from agencies)
Watch Congress leader Rahul Gandhi vacates his official bungalow in Delhi