The Gujarat High Court has reserved its order on a plea filed by Aam Aadmi Party leader Arvind Kejriwal, seeking to be tried separately in a criminal defamation case arising out of remarks related to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s educational qualifications.
The matter was heard by Justice M.R. Mengdey, who considered Kejriwal’s challenge to a trial court decision that refused to split the proceedings against him and fellow AAP leader Sanjay Singh. Kejriwal has argued that there was no shared intention or coordinated action between the two leaders that would justify a joint trial.
The defamation case stems from a complaint filed by Gujarat University, which took exception to statements made by Kejriwal and Singh during a press interaction in 2023 following a High Court order directing the university to disclose information related to the Prime Minister’s degree. The university claimed that the comments were defamatory and harmed its reputation.
Earlier, the trial court and a sessions court had declined to allow separate trials, holding that the statements appeared to have been made with a common objective. Kejriwal subsequently approached the High Court challenging these findings.
After hearing arguments from all sides, the High Court chose to reserve its verdict. The decision, once pronounced, will determine whether Kejriwal and Singh will continue to face trial together or whether their cases will proceed independently.
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