2. Delhi Chief Minister used RTI (Right To Information Act) to request for information about education degree of PM Modi
3. The Chief Information Commissioner (CIC) directed the Delhi University and Gujarat University, to search the information regarding degrees in the name of “Mr Narendra Damodar Modi” in the year 1978 (Graduation in DU) and 1983 (Post Graduation in GU) and provide it to the appellant Mr Kejriwal as soon as possible.
4. Instead of providing requested information, Gujarat University then approached the Gujarat High Court against the CIC’s order.
5. Gujarat High Court ordered that a Gujarat University does not need to provide the required information, and also imposed a fine of Rs 25,000 on Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, who had requested the information under The Right to Information (RTI) Act. Here Kejriwal was not even a party in the case, It was The Chief Information Commissioner who directed the Gujarat University to provide information but the judge still decided to fine Kejriwal. [2]
6. Interestingly, India's top government lawyer, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, represented the the Gujarat university in this case. Gujarat University is hell bent on keeping PM Modi degree information secret while generally universities proudly display records of their notable alumni.
7. Now going even one step ahead, the Gujarat University filed a criminal defamation case against Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and court has sent summons to Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Aam Aadmi Party's Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh. [3]
8. Importantly, the university has also put up a contention in its complainant that CM Kejriwal made the statements in his “personal capacity” and “not affairs of the State”. Agreeing with this submission, the Court last month ordered to delete the word ‘Chief Minister’ from Kejriwal’s name in the cause title of the case. [3]
[1] https://www.nationalheraldindia.com/india/the-curious-case-o....
[2] https://www.outlookindia.com/national/gujarat-high-court-qua...
[3] https://www.livelaw.in/news-updates/pm-modi-degree-defamatio...
