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Congress leaders Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and Mallikarjun Kharge on Sunday flipped the BJP's pitch against Rahul Gandhi, saying Prime Minister Narendra Modi led the BJP's caustic attacks against the Gandhi family and insulted his Kashmiri Pandit lineage.

Calling Rahul Gandhi the "son of a martyr", his sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said the BJP insulted him every day, not even sparing their Nehru-Gandhi family, as the Congress held a day-long demonstration across the country today to protest his disqualification from the Lok Sabha.

The political slugfest over Rahul Gandhi's conviction in a defamation case intensified on Friday after the Congress leader was disqualified from Lok Sabha due to his sentencing.

The Congress termed Rahul's disqualification an attempt to "silence" his voice as it vowed to fight the battle legally and politically. Several other opposition parties, such as AAP, Shiv Sena, TMC, BRS and CPM, spoke out against the Centre over the conviction and subsequent disqualification of the former Wayanad MP.

Congress MP Rahul Gandhi was on Thursday convicted in a 2019 criminal defamation case over his remarks on Prime Minister Narendra Modi's surname and sentenced to two years in jail. The court has also granted him 30 days to appeal the decision.

A lesser punishment will send a wrong message, a Surat court said as it convicted Rahul Gandhi and sentenced him to two years in jail. This is the maximum punishment under the section Rahul Gandhi has been convicted.

The court, in its order, said: "Rahul Gandhi has been previously advised by the Supreme Court to be careful about his statements but there is no change in his conduct. Rahul Gandhi is a sitting MP and as an MP, when you're addressing the public, it is a serious issue. Statements of MPs have a very wide impact and this makes his crime more serious."

Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday held a high-level meeting to review Covid preparedness amid sudden spike in coronavirus cases across the country. The meeting was attended by officials from Prime Minister's office, Home Minister Amit Shah, officials from Prime Minister's office, Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya and other senior officials.

At the meeting, the Prime Minister suggested ways to tackle the Covid situation and advised precaution. He also advised maintenance of vigil. Further, PM Modi emphasised the need to enhance lab surveillance and testing of all Severe Acute Respiratory Illness (SARI) cases.

Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin posed as peacebrokers during a chummy visit in Moscow on Tuesday, again touting a supposed plan to end Russia’s raging war in Ukraine that has been panned by the United States as a one-sided attempt to hand the Kremlin leader cover as he presses on with his invasion.

Putin on Tuesday backed the Chinese leader’s proposal for a “peaceful settlement in Ukraine,” in a show of unity at the Kremlin that raised the prospect of a strengthened anti-Western bulwark at the international level.

But those overtures have been roundly ignored as a serious framework for peace. China’s plan – which calls for a ceasefire and talks, but includes no provision that Moscow withdraw its troops from Ukrainian land – was drawn up without any involvement from Kyiv. The US meanwhile, warned on Monday that Xi’s visit provided “diplomatic cover” for Russia’s war.