Ahmedabad, September 14: Ahmedabad sessions court on Thursday declined to quash the summons issued to two AAP leaders –  Arvind Kejriwal and Sanjay Singh – by a trial court here in a defamation case. A comprehensive order elaborating the court's decision is expected to be made public later in the day. The decision came from the court of Additional Sessions Judge J.M. Brahmbhatt, who dismissed the criminal revision applications filed by the two leaders.

These applications had contested the summons issued by an Ahmedabad magistrate court. Both Delhi Chief Minister Kejriwal and MP Singh are facing a criminal defamation case in the city. Initially, they were summoned to appear before the court on April 15 and were subsequently issued fresh summons on May 23. PM Narendra Modi Degree Case: Supreme Court Dismisses Arvind Kejriwal’s Plea Against Gujarat High Court Order Denying Interim Relief in Academic Degree Defamation Case

The defamation complaint was lodged by Gujarat University registrar Piyush Patel, who accused Kejriwal of defamation based on statements such as, "If PM studied from Delhi University, Gujarat University, then the Gujarat University should celebrate that their alumnus has become the Prime Minister and yet they are trying to hide. Degree is not being shown because maybe the degree is fake, forfeited," and "if the degree is there and it is real, then why is it not being given?" PM Modi Degree Case: Gujarat Court Rejects Pleas of Arvind Kejriwal, AAP Leader Sanjay Singh for Interim Stay on Trial in Criminal Defamation Case

According to the complaint, these statements were made in the presence of the media and were disseminated through Twitter, with the intention of tarnishing the reputation of the university, despite the knowledge that such remarks could be defamatory. These remarks by the AAP leaders came after the Gujarat High Court had overturned a Central Information Commission (CIC) order that had directed the university to "search for information" regarding Prime Minister Narendra Modi's degrees, as alleged by Patel.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 14, 2023 04:24 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).