Gujarat High Court Denies Interim Relief to Kejriwal and Singh in PM Modi Degree Defamation Case
The Gujarat High Court has declined to grant interim relief to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Aam Aadmi Party’s Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh. The duo had sought an interim stay on the proceedings of a criminal defamation complaint filed by Gujarat University. This complaint is in connection with their alleged derogatory remarks concerning Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s academic degree.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Justice Samir J. Dave passed the order after hearing arguments from Senior Advocate Mihir Joshi, representing Kejriwal, and Public Prosecutor Mitesh Amin. The defamation case stems from a controversy where Kejriwal and Singh questioned the authenticity of PM Modi’s degree. Kejriwal had notably stated,
“There is something wrong. If there is a degree, then why aren’t they giving the degree? Why are Delhi and Gujarat Universities not giving out the copies of the degrees? Maybe because the degree is bogus or fake. If the Prime Minister has studied from Delhi University or Gujarat University, then they ought to celebrate the fact that he is their student, who has now become the Prime Minister. But they are hiding the degrees.”
The background of the case reveals that Gujarat University, through its Registrar Dr. Piyush M.Patel, filed the complaint under Section 500 of the Indian Penal Code. They accused Kejriwal and Singh of making
“Sarcastic and defamatory statements in press conferences and on Twitter handles”
targeting the university over Modi’s degree.
The complaint highlights that Kejriwal made these remarks right after the Gujarat High Court order quashed a 2016 directive from the Central Information Commission (CIC). This directive had asked Gujarat University to provide “information regarding degrees in the name of Mr. Narendra Damodar Modi” to Kejriwal.
The university’s complaint also emphasized that Kejriwal made these statements in his “personal capacity” and “not affairs of the State”. Earlier this year, the Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Jayeshbhai Chovatiya observed that the words used by Kejriwal and Singh seemed to target Gujarat University’s reputation. The magistrate noted,
“It is natural that due to the statements of the accused people who know the credit of Gujarat University and all the people who do not know Gujarat University will develop distrust towards Gujarat University.”
The court further opined,
“If political office bearers, instead of fulfilling their duty to their people, do any work for their personal enmity or selfishness, it is considered a violation of the trust of the people.”
Given the unfolding legal scenario, Kejriwal and Singh are now directed to make a personal appearance before the court.
