Ahmedabad:A metropolitan court on Thursday issued a warrant asking Tihar jail authorities to produce Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP) Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh in the court on January 11 for trial in the criminal defamation case filed by Gujarat University over his comments about PM Narendra Modi’s degree.
On an application filed by university’s counsel Amit Nair, additional chief metropolitan magistrate S J Panchal issued the warrant against Singh under Section 267 of the CrPC, which empowers the court to secure the presence of a prisoner for the purpose of court proceedings.
The court’s warrant was issued after the lawyer for Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal, another accused in the case, sought exemption for the day, but Singh’s advocate submitted that since Singh has been lodged in the Tihar jail, he did not have the instructions. Singh’s lawyer sought some time for the same. Singh has been lodged in jail after his arrest in October under the provisions of Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) with regard to an alleged excise scam. As the university had its witnesses present in the court, its counsel did not object to Kejriwal’s exemption plea looking at the possibility of the trial not moving ahead in the light of submission made by Singh’s counsel.
Kejriwal and Singh are facing trial in the criminal defamation case filed by the GU after they made statements about Modi’s degree.
The case was filed after the Gujarat high court quashed an order by the chief information commissioner (CIC), directing the university to divulge Modi’s MA degree under the provisions of Right to Information Act. The HC also imposed a fine of Rs 25,000 on Kejriwal for misuse of RTI provisions and lambasted the CIC for transgressing his jurisdiction by suo motu and directing GU to divulge Modi’s degree in response to Kejriwal’s letter demanding it.
On an application filed by university’s counsel Amit Nair, additional chief metropolitan magistrate S J Panchal issued the warrant against Singh under Section 267 of the CrPC, which empowers the court to secure the presence of a prisoner for the purpose of court proceedings.
The court’s warrant was issued after the lawyer for Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal, another accused in the case, sought exemption for the day, but Singh’s advocate submitted that since Singh has been lodged in the Tihar jail, he did not have the instructions. Singh’s lawyer sought some time for the same. Singh has been lodged in jail after his arrest in October under the provisions of Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) with regard to an alleged excise scam. As the university had its witnesses present in the court, its counsel did not object to Kejriwal’s exemption plea looking at the possibility of the trial not moving ahead in the light of submission made by Singh’s counsel.
Kejriwal and Singh are facing trial in the criminal defamation case filed by the GU after they made statements about Modi’s degree.
The case was filed after the Gujarat high court quashed an order by the chief information commissioner (CIC), directing the university to divulge Modi’s MA degree under the provisions of Right to Information Act. The HC also imposed a fine of Rs 25,000 on Kejriwal for misuse of RTI provisions and lambasted the CIC for transgressing his jurisdiction by suo motu and directing GU to divulge Modi’s degree in response to Kejriwal’s letter demanding it.