- By Radha Basnet
- Tue, 16 Jan 2024 04:03 PM (IST)
- Source:PTI
PM Modi Degree Row: The Supreme Court on Tuesday stayed the proceedings before a trial court on a defamation complaint filed by the Gujarat University against Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and AAP MP Sanjay Singh for their alleged comments about Prime Minister Narendra Modi's educational qualification.
The judgement was deliverd by the bench comprising Justices BR Gavai and Sandeep Mehta. The court decided to put a stay on the matter while considering Singh's plea, seeking a transfer of the case, pending before a trial court in Gujarat, outside the state, preferably in Kolkata.
The Gujarat High Court was asked by the apex court to decide within four weeks on a plea filed by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders seeking quashing of the summonses issued to them by the trial court. In the meantime, the proceedings before the trial court will remain stayed, the bench said.
Singh, in his plea filed in the top court, had alleged bias in the proceedings before the trial court. He claimed that the trial judge was proceeding with the matter while the plea was pending before the high court.
In August last year, the top court refused to entertain Kejriwal's plea challenging the high court order that rejected his request to stay the criminal defamation proceedings filed by the university. Piyush Patel, the registrar of Gujarat University, filed a defamation lawsuit against Delhi CM Kejriwal and Singh for their alleged remarks after the Gujarat High Court overturned the chief information commissioner's order to give them access to Modi's academic credentials under the Right to Information (RTI) Act.
According to the complaint filed by Patel, the two leaders allegedly made "defamatory" statements, targeting the university over Modi's degrees. Their comments targeting the Gujarat University were defamatory and hurt the prestige of the institution, which has established its name among the public, the complainant alleged.
(With Agency Inputs)
