This is an archive article published on November 9, 2023
Modi’s degree case: Gujarat HC dismisses Kejriwal’s review plea, says ‘does not reflect good taste in public life’
In March, the high court had allowed a Gujarat University petition and quashed a Central Information Commission order that directed the university to ‘search for information’ on PM Narendra Modi’s degrees.
3 min readAhmedabadUpdated: Nov 9, 2023 11:15 PM IST
In his review petition, Kejriwal had also challenged the cost of Rs 25,000 that was imposed on him by the court for persisting with the matter of the PM’s degrees.
Modi’s degree case: Gujarat HC dismisses Kejriwal’s review plea, says ‘does not reflect good taste in public life’
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Rejecting a review plea moved by Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in connection to seeking information regarding Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s educational degrees, the Gujarat High Court on Thursday said that Kejriwal continuing to harp upon following the cause by proceeding with the review application “does not reflect good taste in public life”.
The dismissal paves the way for Gujarat University (GU) to proceed with the criminal defamation suits against Kejriwal and Rajya Sabha AAP MP Sanjay Singh.
The HC on Thursday rejected Kejriwal’s application seeking a review of its March order that quashed a directive of the Central Information Commission (CIC), which had asked GU to “search for information” regarding Modi’s degrees. The GU has alleged that Kejriwal and Singh made defamatory statements days after the March verdict.
The court of Justice Biren Vaishnav said on Thursday that it would “tend to agree with the submission” of Solicitor General of India Tushar Mehta — representing GU — that Kejriwal, having “lost in his legal remedy” when the HC allowed GU’s petition in March, “continues to harp upon his pursuit in following a cause by proceeding in this review application in a manner which does not reflect good taste in public life”.
“The court is conscious that seeking a review is and could be a remedy available in law but looking to the grounds and the arguments raised before this court in the review application, it cannot be said that the applicant (Kejriwal) has sought to invoke this remedy purely with a view to seeking legal recourse,” Justice Vaishnav observed. Dismissing the review petition, the court of Justice Vaishnav, however, imposed no costs.
In March, allowing the varsity’s plea, the court had imposed a penalty of Rs 25,000 on Kejriwal. In his review petition, Kejriwal had challenged the cost imposed on him by the court for persisting with the matter of the PM’s degrees. In review, the court, however, held that the cost was justified as Kejriwal “tried to deflect the entire proceedings to politicise the issue”.
Thursday’s verdict implies that Kejriwal will now have to pay the penalty of Rs 25,000.
Seeking a review of the March order, Kejriwal had submitted in his review petition that while Mehta, on behalf of GU, submitted that Modi’s degree is available on the university’s website, “upon a scan of the said website…(it) is found that the said ‘degree’ is not available, but a document referred to as OR (Office Register) is displayed”. He added that the display of “degree” on the university’s official website is taken as the preliminary and main ground for seeking a review of the court’s earlier order. The Delhi CM also alleged that with the degree not being available on the website, the judgment thus “suffers from the error apparent on the face of the record and permitting them would lead to failure of justice”.
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However, opposing the review application, Mehta added that a remedy for Kejriwal would lie in appeal and not a review. He had further insisted to the court that cost be imposed even for filing review, terming it to be “only an attempt to keep the pot boiling for something which the law prohibits”.
Sohini Ghosh is a Senior Correspondent at The Indian Express. Previously based in Ahmedabad covering Gujarat, she recently moved to the New Delhi bureau, where she primarily covers legal developments at the Delhi High Court
Professional Profile
Background: An alumna of the Asian College of Journalism (ACJ), she previously worked with ET NOW before joining The Indian Express.
Core Beats: Her reporting is currently centered on the Delhi High Court, with a focus on high-profile constitutional disputes, disputes over intellectual property, criminal and civil cases, issues of human rights and regulatory law (especially in the areas of technology and healthcare).
Earlier Specialty: In Gujarat, she was known for her rigorous coverage in the beats of crime, law and policy, and social justice issues, including the 2002 riot cases, 2008 serial bomb blast case, 2016 flogging of Dalits in Una, among others.
She has extensively covered health in the state, including being part of the team that revealed the segregation of wards at the state’s largest government hospital on lines of faith in April 2020.
With Ahmedabad being a UNESCO heritage city, she has widely covered urban development and heritage issues, including the redevelopment of the Sabarmati Ashram
Recent Notable Articles (Late 2025)
Her recent reporting from the Delhi High Court covers major political, constitutional, corporate, and public-interest legal battles:
High-Profile Case Coverage
She has extensively covered the various legal battles - including for compensation under the aegis of North East Delhi Riots Claims Commission - pertaining to the 2020 northeast Delhi riots, as well as 1984 anti-Sikh riots.
She has also led coverage at the intersection of technology and governance, and its impact on the citizenry, from, and beyond courtrooms — such as the government’s stakeholder consultations for framing AI-Deepfake policy.
Signature Style
Sohini is recognized for her sustained reporting from courtrooms and beyond. She specialises in breaking down dense legal arguments to make legalese accessible for readers. Her transition from Gujarat to Delhi has seen her expand her coverage on regulatory, corporate and intellectual property law, while maintaining a strong commitment to human rights and lacuna in the criminal justice system.
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