Indian opposition leader Rahul Gandhi has been sentenced to two years in prison in a criminal defamation case for remarks he made about Prime Minister Narendra Modi's surname during an election rally in 2019.

Gandhi, who was present in the local court in Modi’s home state of Gujarat when the sentence was pronounced Thursday, has been granted bail.

The sentence was suspended for 30 days to allow him to appeal, a lawyer representing Gandhi said.

The defamation case was filed by a lawmaker of India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Purnesh Modi (no relation).

At the 2019 rally in the southern state of Karnataka, Gandhi had rhetorically asked why "all thieves" had Modi as their surname, according to the Times of India newspaper and other local media.

Well known at the time was the case of Nirav Modi, a diamond tycoon who was charged with fraud and embezzlement, and Lalit Modi, former chief of the Indian Premier League cricket tournament, who was accused of corruption.

The BJP lawmaker filed the complaint in the court in Surat in the western state of Gujarat soon afterward, saying Gandhi had maligned holders of his surname and his community.

The court’s verdict comes around a year before India is due to hold parliamentary elections in April-May 2024 when Prime Minister Modi is expected to seek a third term.

The two-year sentence may disqualify Gandhi from the Lok Sabha or lower house of parliament where the Indian National Congress party leader has been consistently raising issues criticizing the Modi government.

Congress party lawyers said correct legal procedures had not been followed in the case and Gandhi will appeal against the verdict.