The Supreme Court on Monday rejected a plea by former Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Arvind Kejriwal, which challenged a Gujarat High Court order refusing to quash summons in a defamation case concerning his remarks on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s educational qualifications.
A bench of Justices Hrishikesh Roy and S V N Bhatti noted that the apex court had earlier dismissed a similar plea by AAP leader Sanjay Singh on April 8, 2023, in the same case. “We must have a consistent approach,” the bench remarked, reaffirming the court’s uniform stance.
Gujarat High Court’s February 2023 Ruling
On February 16, 2023, the Gujarat High Court dismissed petitions from both Kejriwal and Singh, which sought to quash the trial court summons issued in a defamation case filed by Gujarat University. The case arose from remarks made by the two leaders questioning the authenticity of Modi’s educational degrees during a public event.
After the trial court summoned them, both Kejriwal and Singh challenged the summons in the Gujarat High Court. When the High Court dismissed their revision pleas, they moved to the Supreme Court, where their petitions were again rejected.