PM Modi degree row: Gujarat High Court issues notice in pleas by Arvind Kejriwal, Sanjay Singh seeking quashing of summons

The Gujarat High Court on Thursday issued notice to the Gujarat University (GU) through its registrar Piyush Patel in two petitions moved by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and his Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) colleague, Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh, in relation to a defamation complaint pertaining to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s degrees.

The two AAP leaders have challenged the summons issued by an Ahmedabad magistrate court in a criminal defamation complaint filed by GU against them. The two are also seeking that an Ahmedabad sessions court order upholding the summons issued by the magistrate court be set aside.

Kejriwal and Singh are facing a criminal defamation case in Ahmedabad and were initially issued a summons by a magistrate court to appear before it on April 15 and again issued a fresh summons on May 23. The two AAP leaders had moved the high court on September 16, challenging the April summons, seeking that they be quashed.

Senior advocate Rebecca John and advocate Aum Kotwal appeared on behalf of the two AAP leaders on Thursday. The notice has been kept returnable by November 3, when the court is due to take up the matter next.

With the magistrate court due to take up the criminal defamation trial on October 14, the court of Justice J C Doshi, however, refused to accede to requests by the petitioners to direct for a stay or adjournment on the trial while the petitions are pending before the high court. A request to direct the magistrate court to consider an adjournment application if moved by the petitioners was also refused by Justice Doshi.